A couple of years ago American company the TEAM brought their show
Mission Drift to
The Artist Formerly Known As Shed, a Vegas-based piece of Americana that was
generally well-liked but which I didn't warm to. I believe in giving second chances
though, and this time they're at the Royal Court with a show that had many moments
that entertained me, but as a whole struggled to remain memorable even as far as the
journey home. Ann (Libby King) is a butch, shy lesbian who works in a meat
processing plant in South Dakota; having started on reception she was moved to the
factory floor as her bosses thought she was "more suited" to that environment, and
she's been there for 15 years. She loves Elvis Presley and when she gets back home
has imagined conversations with him to stave off her loneliness, until she finds
Brenda (Kristen Sieh) on a dating site. After a couple of days together they decide
it isn't going to work out, but their extended date includes a trip to Mount
Rushmore, where Brenda tells her she comes from the same town as Theodore Roosevelt,
whom it seems Elvis idolised in turn. Emboldened by her recent experiences, Ann
decides to drive to Graceland in
RoosevElvis.
