Bottoming For Jesus theatre review: Filling spiritual holes
Spirituality and sexuality collide in Michael R Speciàle’s vividly entertaining discussion of his early life
Michael R Speciàle grew up with a hole in his soul. At age 15, he filled that hole with Jesus. After converting 150 people to the Mormon Church in Paraguay, Speciàle realised he may not have been on the right path and came out as gay, aged 23.
Bottoming For Jesus is a whirlwind ride, blending comedy, cabaret and sermons. It’s touchingly poignant and occasionally very funny. For a fairly bombastic show, Speciàle’s writing is nuanced and unflinchingly honest; he’s unafraid to state his conflicting views on the Mormon church, rather than writing it off entirely.
A couple of non-original songs are slightly self-indulgent but the performance blends imaginative set design with innovative set pieces, like getting the audience to rip up paper copies of Speciàle’s angst-ridden teenage emails to use as confetti. Bottoming For Jesus is a ritualistic cleansing of the soul. Or possibly hole.
Bottoming For Jesus, Zoo Southside, until 30 August, 10.40pm.