When Luke Farrugia takes to the stage at the moment, he doesn’t just have to get into the character of one person – but 7, and all of them well-known and well-loved divas.
Luke is starring in the cult musical Frank’s Closet, which this week gets a one-night-only outing at London’s Arts Theatre, after previous highly successful runs at the Union Theatre and Wilton’s Music Hall.
Maltese-born Luke was not a child performer but aged 4 or 5 his mother sent him to a Saturday drama class to build his confidence. “As a teenager, I caught the theatre bug and at 18 told my parents I wanted to go to drama school,“ he told me.
And so he came to England and studied at the Central School, and almost immediately after graduating was a finalist in the prestigious Stephen Sondheim Society Student Performer Of The Year (SSSPOTY) contest, with the redoubtable Elaine Page as its head judge the year he entered.
“I had a great time. I discovered quite how funny I could be. At drama school there wasn’t much chance to be funny.”
A spell at the Vienna English Theatre followed but then Covid forced him back to England and into a job at Planet Organic, where there was no footfall and little to do. Other non-theatre jobs followed. “It forced me out of the industry for a while.”
Before Covid he had auditioned for a job at Disneyland Paris and now they renewed their contact with him and so for 6 months he was Timon the meerkat in a lavish production of The Lion King. Disneyland had a 9 million euros show budget for the season. “It was incredible and a wonderful place with world-class creatives. I did it for me.”
Panto at Watford followed on and then along came Frank’s Closet. The storyline involves Frank, who is about to marry his boyfriend and divest himself of his collection of diva costumes. But out of the closet they come for one last time and spring to life – Marie, Ethel, Agnetha, Judy, Julie, Dusty, and Karen – I’m sure you can supply the surnames. And they’re all played by Luke.
“It gets a gay audience, and people leave with a sense of wonder,” he told me.
As a lifelong impressionist, it seems he’s hit a rich vein of characters to portray and all with lightning quick changes. “It’s very who I am. It almost feels like it was written for me – though it wasn’t. It’s all happening in Frank’s head so the songs and characters are pastiches : it’s sent up with love and the characters only speak famous lines attributed to them.
“It’s a kind of gay Christmas Carol but opium-fed. It’s a bit bonkers.” The divas have all had terrible marriages so they’re not the best to give advice to Frank on the cusp of his wedding.
The show, by Stuart Wood and directed by Sasha Regan has acquired a cult following since its inception in 2009. “I’d love to carry on with it. It’s hard for new musicals to succeed right now.”
Luke makes no secret of being gay – his Instagram proudly says Queer next to his name and profession. “I don’t hide it. I own it. It’s part of my identity.” Luke is a staunch supporter of queer characters on stage and screen being played by queer actors.
“It’s a social responsibility for gay characters to be seen and as gay actor you’re somehow connected through yourself to the role. Gay people want to see themselves represented on stage and film. There should be a queer hand on the wheel of telling a queer story. It makes a massive difference to young gay people seeing their true selves can be represented.”
Asked to give advice to a teenage Luke, he said: “ just don’t worry. You can be yourself. it’s enough. You don’t have to be anything else.”
Tickets for Frank’s Closet on Sunday 17 November – artstheatrewestend.co.uk