Rob Madge in his show coming up at the Ambassadors [Mark Senior]

JOHN Madge, an electrical parts wholesaler based in the Midlands, would come home from a hard day at work, stick on a wig and perform classic Disney hits under the careful direction of his child, Rob.

Twenty years later, Rob is taking to the West End stage with his show My Son’s A Queer (But What Can You Do?) – a hilarious one-person performance that reveals how he roped a fairly macho-dad into playing significant roles in sitting room shows for the family.

“I was on tour with Les Misérables, living out of a suitcase,” Rob told the New Journal. “But the pandemic meant we all had to go home. I had nowhere to go so I went got back to my parents and my childhood home. There, I found old home videos with recordings of the shows I would do with dad.”

Rob was clearly destined for the stage from a young age – and the new show at the Ambassadors Theatre tells the story of the performances the Madge family put on.

They all won critical acclaim from the sole audience member, Rob’s granny.

“I’d turn my house into Disneyland,” Rob remembers. “They were big affairs – we had smoke machines, lights, costume reveals. It was ridiculous and camp and lovely.”

Having rediscovered archive proof of his early talent, he put them on social media for a modern audience to enjoy.

“People liked them,” Rob recalls. “What struck me were so many people commented on my dad – how he got involved, how he let his son wear wigs and dresses.”

The comments got Rob thinking, What had been second nature to the Madge family was being praised as a game approach to parenting.

“It occurred to me this was to do with people not seeing positive parental figures,” adds Rob.

“They had watched discussions over gender become mired in the same bigoted language of homophobia.

“It came as a surprise that people were fixated on my family’s reaction to me.  hat had just been my world. You do not see that reflected on TV, film, in books – there is so much of a focus on negativity. Yes – that exists and it is important to recognise – but we should be able to see the reality that there is a lot of support out there and remembering that normalises things a bit more.

“My dad has always just been there for me. He’s not into theatre – but here is my butch dad wearing a wig.”

Rob Madge [Mark Senior]

Rob identifies as non binary and has watched the so-called “culture wars” debates erupt over transgender rights. This has lead to attacks on entertainment like drag acts.

“Drag acts are nothing new. They have been around for centuries – yet there is currently a backlash against drag acts,” they add.

“It is seen as somehow ‘woke’ and people are weaponising the word and using queer performers to justify bigotry.”

Their father John helped Rob create the show at the theatre in West Street, Covent ­Garden.

“We’d send each other ideas,” Rob said. “He would recall conversations we had when I was younger. It took me right back. I took the shows in the living room extremely seriously. “I drew up rehearsal schedules. I’d make posters to put on the dining room door. It was nostalgic, a period we recalled so warmly.”

As an actor who has performed in shows with large casts – Rob has appeared in Mary Poppins, Oliver!, Les Misérables, Matilda and Bed Knobs and Broomsticks – suddenly having the stage to yourself is a new experience.

“The pros of doing a one-person show is you have more licence to play around,” Rob says. “But then again, I am the only one up there and every one is looking at me so it is much scarier. I never get stage fright but I do feel the pressure to make sure the story is translating.

“I feel more connected to the audience. I am telling them about my childhood, sharing it each day, and that can feel a bit bizarre and a bit strange.”