The 61-year-old judge pressed the Golden Buzzer for singer Nightbirde who revealed she had cancer and only a small chance of survival on Tuesday s America s Got Talent.
Theatre’s back, back, back again, and Alyssa Edwards is its unexpected new star.
Walking into the Vaudeville Theatre – mask on, temperature checked, ticket in hand – I wasn’t entirely sure how a West End show starring, by and about Alyssa Edwards would work. After all, there’s a big difference between watching a two-act theatre revue and bingeing “Best of Alyssa Edwards” YouTube compilations for the 17th time in lockdown three. Tongue pops and back rolls will only take you so far – but fortunately, Alyssa Edwards is much more than that.
If you’ve watched her Netflix series,
PinkNews‘ eye-opening interview with Alyssa, here), you’ll be familiar with the Texan queen’s genuine warmth and lightning-quick wit – both of which seem to find their natural home on the West End stage.
Last modified on Wed 9 Jun 2021 14.13 EDT
âMy favourite subject is talking about me,â Alyssa Edwards tells us â so she must really be enjoying her West End show, in which she does nothing but. Memoirs of a Queen traces Alyssaâs journey from childhood in Mesquite, Texas, to reality TV apotheosis, via coming-out tales, Miss America contests and abundant RuPaulâs Drag Race chit-chat. None of it is very surprising, and the backstage gossip would test the patience of all but the most ardent Drag Race devotees. But Edwards â AKA Justin Johnson â is a likably unpretentious host and, as youâd expect from the self-described âSteven Spielberg of danceâ, the choreography catches the eye.
Agustin PAULLIER / AFP
People participate in the annual LA Pride Parade in West Hollywood, California, on June 9, 2019.
With COVID-19 restrictions easing around the country, Pride organizers share how they re brought back Pride in 2021.
In late February 2020, Noah Gonzalez, a vice president on the board of Los Angeles Pride, was watching COVID-19 cases begin to escalate in California and had a portentous phone call with one of his team members. “I remember jokingly saying, ‘What if we have to cancel Pride?’” he recalls. “And then suddenly it became this thing where it was like, ‘Oh, we actually need to start talking about this seriously. ”