Gingham never looked so good. In She’s Behind You, Scotland’s pantomime powerhouse Johnny McKnight teams up with National Theatre Of Scotland to deliver a whip-smart, unapologetically queer celebration of the form’s rebellious roots. As Dorothy Blawna-Gale, McKnight is magnetic: rude, tender and riotously funny. Adapted from a University Of Glasgow lecture, the show blends educational reverence with theatrical flair. It exposes pantomime’s hypocrisies and gendered absurdities (even when McKnight himself has played a part), but always with love for the genre’s unruly dialogue, joyful chaos, radical accessibility, and ability to ‘see’ its audience. Farce here is craft, and camp is truth.

Layered and fearless, the humour dazzles while its political spine defends queer culture and women with clarity and conviction. McKnight’s commitment to these communities isn’t a sub-plot: it’s the heart of his work. Visually, it’s Christmas come early. Grant Anderson’s lighting bathes the stage in rainbow glitz, reflecting McKnight’s star power and the show’s spirit of reclamation. She’s Behind You isn’t just entertainment; it’s a thrilling reminder that pantomime belongs to the people, and a glittering, gutsy call to joy, proving that radical celebration can be revolutionary. A triumph of truth, tinsel and theatrical resistance. 

She’s Behind You, Traverse Theatre, until 24 August, times vary.