Clueless: The Musical

 Recently I had a couple of days off and took the opportunity to see a couple of shows in London. Previously I've mentioned Inside No.9 and I went to see their new stage show Stage/Fright which was very good but I also went to see Clueless: The Musical. 

I've probably talked a lot about Clueless before and how it was an influential film for me growing up. In fact I think at one point I was writing letters pretending to be Cher (not posted of course, just a fun thing) and drawing pictures of how I thought I would look in some of the outfits (which are still in existence and I'm torn on whether to destroy or not). Anyway, I rewatched the film the night before I went and it's still a lot of fun. It did also strike me that in this day and age you probably need a Monty Python style caption blinking 'SATIRE' at several points as there are a lot of gags particularly to do with mobile phones that would sail over peoples heads these days but back then they were more of a status symbol and you had to be wealthy to afford one. 

I was please to see a few people at the musical in Clueless inspired outfits and I myself was wearing a yellow plaid skirt, yellow cardigan and a pink 'Bronson Alcott High' t-shirt. I did stop short of the white knee socks though but I would really have wanted to do it if I didn't have to travel on the train and I still feel a bit self-conscious about that sort of thing.

Emma Flynn as Cher Horowitz in Clueless: The Musical
Photo by Matt Crockett

Overall I enjoyed the musical and may see it again as I note the songs were inspired by 90s music genres so I may have to listen again to properly appreciate them. The outfits were good too, not quite the same as their film counterparts but still recognisable. For example, Cher's iconic plaid outfit (above) has been redesigned with a cropped jacket and a blouse/shirt with tails out with additional beret. Cher does wear a beret sometimes in the film but they've added it more here and I quite like this look. The main actress, Emma Flynn, certainly has a good history for playing Cher having played Elle Woods (Legally Blonde) and Sandy (Grease) previously. Actually I've also noticed how serendipitous her name is. It also made me notice how much people on stage work shifting bits of set and scenery around and how props were adapted for example a sofa being changed into Cher's white jeep. 

I did finally get the shoes for my Cher cosplay so I've now got a bit more enthusiasm to do that at a show at some point this year. I've also made a point of wanting to go back to the source material and read Emma by Jane Austen (which Clueless is based on). I did watch the 2020 film adaptation with Anya Taylor-Joy (in which she also wore a yellow dress in tribute to Clueless) but I haven't seen the 1996 Gwyneth Paltrow version as yet. 

Check-Up #9

I'm continuing my trend of not having an awful lot to talk about recently due to one thing or another. I guess it may be the time of year or the ongoing crisis although the lockdown is easing here so things may be back to normal, or approaching normal, quite soon. I'm probably still going to be on my amended work schedule for the next couple of months which is no bad thing as I've been getting more downtime recently and it's quite nice.

Anyway, I've been buying clothing again and this time I bought a smart black skirt for work. Still no changing rooms so it had to be a rough guess that my regular size would fit me and thankfully it did. I don't really have the confidence to slip it on in the store in front of people.  I know I did say it was a work skirt but I am still working from home a lot so it's mainly for that but like the traditional LBD I think a smart black skirt is something that comes in useful and already I've coupled it with some tops and it looks really nice. There are a couple of decorative buttons on the top as well and I'm a sucker for that sort of thing and I think this is also down to the costumes from Clueless and that spoiled rich girl look.

In other media, I've mainly been watching season three of Ru Paul's Drag Race as I think it's the only one I've never seen. I remember watching the first two late night in my bedroom hoping that my parents wouldn't hear and ask too many questions about why I was watching. By the time it changed channels I had moved out and was a little more confident. I'm also watching the fifth season of Drag Race All Stars and I caught an episode of Neighbours today which was Pride themed and with former Drag Race contestant Courtney Act. The show has a transgender character now as well which is quite cool and I was reading about her and the actress earlier.

It's All Yellow

My friends, I have crumbled.

Now, my pledge to stop buying clothes wasn't going to last forever of course but I had hoped to resist buying everything that caught my eye. Unless I bought a bigger wardrobe in the process. This week I did come away with a couple of purchases. I've mentioned before that I do want to cosplay Cher from Clueless in her yellow plaid suit at some point and this week I saw a lovely yellow cardigan that I could wear with it. It's not perfect as the original is lower cut and has bigger buttons but this should do until I find something closer but I still have to try it with the suit to see if it properly matches up. Also in cosplay, a friend of mine gave me some stuff to help with my Missy costume. I'm still looking into getting the actual suit which hopefully will be soon. The more I think about it, the more I'm looking forward to it.

The yellow cardie came along at the right time really as I have been looking into wearing brighter clothes as I do tend to go for blue and black quite a bit. Funnily enough in the last week I've seen a lot of mustard yellow tights around so it may be something that's coming back in at least for Winter. I actually have a pair myself. Dark red is also quite a Wintery colour I've seen around and I have a skirt which I bought quite cheap recently and I'm still finding out how wonderful it looks with various combinations of tops although it feels a little loose so I'm having to pair it with a belt quite a bit. Sometimes you need to feel that bit of bite to know that something is on.     

One dress I did have my eye on was a lovely blue and black zig-zaged number with a slim black belt. also had a bit of a boob window. For a while, lots of clothes seemed to shapes randomly cut out of them. I remember seeing one range of jumpers advising the consumer to check the back lest they get home and find a dirty great hole in the back that was in fact intentionally there. I didn't try it on but I can't stop thinking about it so I may go for it if it's still there at the weekend. What I did buy however was a dress I think I mentioned a few weeks ago, it's a gold and black houndstooth patterned dress with a black collar. It was down to half price. I may have resisted but for the black tights I was wearing at the time and oh it just looked so good.

This week, with an informal staff day looming, I've been thinking about dressing for work again. I'm fairly confident I could handle it and I even have an outfit in mind I would feel comfortable in. Perhaps I'll wait and see how I feel in a couple of months. No links for this week but I hope you've enjoyed this little missive.

New Years Eve Update

Good evening everyone,

Apologies to anyone still following me for not posting much during the year. I seem to have stopped after March and although I thought a lot about it, sometimes it takes a lot to get back doing it again after a time away.

This has been a nice year for me. I've started having some therapy sessions every few months and I've continued with my dressing. I'm pleased to say that I'm still getting good reactions from both men and women about it. Last month though i nearly got caught changing at work to go to a party after. Typical, over 8 floors and it would have taken me less than a minute to get out and someone clocked me. If she did though she certainly didn't say anything. I did start a new job this year though with the same company. Just a different level of stress really.

Recently I've been buying some cute tops too and some pinafore dresses. I've been trying to cut back though as i just feel I've been buying too much and i don't have the space but i just can't resist sometimes. I haven't done a lot of cosplay this year and that may be due to Nine Worlds not being on but I have put together a 13th Doctor outfit I'm looking forward to wearing next year and a friend of mine is doing me a plaid skirt suit like Cher from Clueless which has always been something i would love to wear. I've got a lot more ideas as well.

Christmas was a nice break and like many I watched the Gavin and Stacey
Christmas special and was pleased to hear Pamela note that crossdressing was 'perfectly normal'. I also have to say I loved Sonia's outfit and Stacey's pink dress.

I guess I've also struggled with loneliness a bit this year especially on New Year's Eve when it feels like the whole world is out at a party. I'm just sat here watching The Last Leg and drinking beer. So anyway, hope everyone had a great Christmas and New Year. Hopefully I'll start posting more again next year.

Perfect Plaid

Now, anyone who reads this blog (and I hope there are still people that do) will know that I'm a fan of the movie Clueless and Cher's wonderful range of outfits and in particular her iconic yellow plaid skirt suit (which I hope to cosplay one day).

A couple of months ago I was saying how I bought a yellow plaid skirt (zip still needs to be fixed before I can wear it though) well the style seems to be making a comeback as I've seen yellow plaid jumpers, skirts, jackets and dresses pop into numerous shops over the past few weeks. Various colours of plaid skirts are also about and also checks, the main being houndstooth, continue to be popular. In fact most of the patterns I associated with my Grandad's jackets growing up are now being worn by young women.

So now I have decide exactly how much yellow plaid I want to invest in...

Cosplay List

Since I've been thinking about it recently, here's a list of crossplays I'm thinking about:

• Cher (Clueless - yellow plaid suit)
• Amy Pond (Pirate outfit from The Curse of the Black Spot)
• Harley Quinn (Surely a must for most crossplayers. Not sure which version. Not the traditional one but perhaps Suicide Squad version)
• Scarlet Witch (Age of Ultron)
• Clara Oswald (Time of the Doctor - both outfits)
• Clara Oswald (Waitress outfit from Hell Bent)
• Clara Oswald (Asylum of the Daleks)
• Clara Oswald (Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS)
• Alex Drake (Ashes to Ashes)
• Buffy Summers (Prophecy Girl)
• Rose Tyler (1950s dress from The Idiots Lantern)
• Chiana (Farscape - more of a fantasy since all that body paint really isn't my style)
• Jennifer Walters AKA She Hulk (Business suit, green make-up. Again, fantasy)
• Peggy Carter (Perhaps army uniform or blue suit)
• Jubilee (I liked her look in X-Men: Apocalypse)
• Kaylee Frye (Firefly)

There are some more gender appropriate cosplays I've considered including: The Tenth Doctor and Castiel (Supernatural). 

The list will probably change as time goes on. 

May Update

Apologies once again for not writing sooner but a bit of lethargy has set in. Work has also been very busy and extra stressful recently.

Bought some new clothes recently including a nice Tartan mini skirt and a grey sparkly jumper which has become my new favourite thing. Probably more as well but I can't remember. Need more tops though and dresses and I need to try shoes at some point. Lately I've been veering towards wanting to try the full thing with wigs and make-up and everything.

There is a very mixed cosplay update too. I started constructing my Cher costume...which has ultimately failed at this point at least. The suit I bought was too small (although the skirt sorta fits) and the cardigan I bought was too small. Bought a white top and white knee high socks though which seem to be fine. I can't lie that it's disappointing but I hope to give it another shot soon. I also got a red Star Trek dress which looks lovely. Now all I need for that is a pair of boots.

April Update

Well it hasn't been the best month so far.

I've just had a very trying week at work and one that's just shot my confidence to shit although it has left me thinking that if I can suffer through some of the people that I do then maybe going out fully 'dressed' wouldn't be as daunting as I think it would be. I almost want to do it just to 'get it over with' so to speak. I know I've done it at conventions and parties before but taking a walk in public is a bit different to that. I'm wondering if I should take it slow at first and build up. Baby steps. Perhaps try a top or jumper, something that people might not look twice at, before trying a skirt and tights. Then again I wouldn't be inclined to go full wig and make-up although I've been thinking a lot about that recently. Perhaps I need to do some experimenting. I did see a man on the tube recently with a long skirt on and full beard. Have to say I respected him.

Not bought anything new recently (apart from the denim skirt which I think I've mentioned) but I've also been coming back to a few old cosplay ideas too. The Star Trek dress and one of my top fantasies (as I've stated before) Cher's yellow plaid suit from Clueless. It's really only the blazer that I think I would have trouble with. It's easy enough to find a yellow plaid skirt, cardigan, white top, white knee highs and black heels. I think I've found a place to buy it though and I've been a bit excited thinking about it this weekend.

There's so much stuff I keep meaning to write but I've fallen behind again and I can't believe its been a year since I did a Quantum Leap. Hopefully more soon.

November Update

I have earth shattering news today! 

I walked into a shop and exchanged money for goods! Incredible isn't it. 

OK, so it's not that incredible but after having moaned on here before about my failure to buy female clothing in shops but today I succeeded in buying a couple of skirts in a two different shops. One is a long peach skirt and the other is short black and had ruffles on it. tried them on and they look lovely. I just need some more suitable tops to go with them now. 

I've been thinking more about cosplay recently since some friends of mine have started doing it in the last couple of years and if they start doing more I am considering joining them at more conventions. Their enthusiasm has made me what to do things properly because I do tend to slpa together something last minute either due to having left zero prep time, suffer chronic indecision or my bottle goes. Perhaps I should start planning a bit more. i would still love to do the red Clara dress and accessories. The ultimate cosplay for me though would be Cher's yellow plaid suit from Clueless. I saw a skirt the other week and considered buying it even though it would have been too small but it got my interest back up so I went looking online. I may be able to get one custom made so I'm seriously considering it. Not sure where I would wear it though but I do know a cinema where they show it occasionally so it could receive a outing there. 

This leads me on to TV and Scream Queens which I've been watching recently. Wonderful outfits. There's always something thrilling about a bitchy Queen Bee with a stylish wardrobe and Emma Roberts is brilliant as Chanel. I've also been watching and still loving DC's crop of superhero shows along with the always stylishly dressed Felicity Smoak from Arrow and Caitlyn Snow from The Flash. Can't say I'm totally getting into Supergirl but it's still a decent show and Melissa Benoist is a wonderfully enthusiastic lead.  

Fancy

I'm probably very behind the times regarding todays popular hit parade but I heard about the video for this song a while ago and after having a still pop up in a picture search I decided to give it a shot.

The song is Fancy by Iggy Azalea featuring Charli XCX and is inspired by the movie Clueless. The video is from YouTube

I've spoken before about my love for Clueless and I'm glad to see scenes recreated for this video. Regarding the song, it's not normally my thing but I found it quite catchy after a few listens and for a tune about rich party girls it's great that they chose to homage something like Clueless rather than the usual kind of rap video content. It really gels with the subject of the song and, rather than just a feel, it heavily references particular scenes from the movie.

Growing up with it it feels odd to see Clueless referenced and held up as a classic but I suppose it was girls my age that fell in love with it back in 1995 especially the look. I know that if I was a teenage girl back then, I would have been hooked by it and there is still something sexy about knee socks. Many of the outfits are recreated well and of course there's Cher's yellow plaid suit and Iggy definitely wears it well. As I've said before, this is a dream outfit of mine. If I were to achieve one thing through cross dressing it would be to wear that outfit (probably at a fancy dress party) and feel like a spoiled 90s teen princess for an evening.

The Boy In The Dress.

This drama, based on David Walliams' book was shown on BBC1 today and I really enjoyed it. 

I did wonder whether it would be a bit like Billy's New Frock which inspired me when I was younger. In some ways it was but this was more the boy's choice rather than something forced upon him which effects a change. 

Young Dennis lives in a miserable household with his Dad and brother following his parents split. The only drop of colour in his life was his mum who has now left but he always remembered how she was and what fabulous clothes she wore. One day he buys a copy of Vogue and soon attracts the attention of popular girl Lisa who provides a friend to talk and someone to push his new found interests further.

It's nice that Dennis is a typical young boy with an interest in football and a lot of talent. The stereotype of the crossdresser is often that of a gay young man with no interest in sports. In fact Dennis' sexual preference is never really explored. The closest we come to that is Lisa and she could either be a crush or a really good friend. Lisa is perhaps the crossdresser's dream made flesh. A bright, popular girl who is willing to talk about fashion with you, dress you up and inspire you to go out dressed.

Typically, it feels an idealised ending with the football team deciding that they can't do without the expelled Dennis so much they are willing to drag up to get him back an much like the gay bashers who turn out to be repressing their own homosexual feelings, the hardline headmaster (a brilliant Tim McInnerny) turns out to be a crossdresser too. There are some nice parallels with Dennis' sikh friend putting up with religious intolerance and his depressed Dad's world opening up because of the incident. There was a good cast and I especially liked Jennifer Saunders' batty French teacher, the Arkwright-esque newsagent Raj and James Buckley's apathetic gym teacher. 

Overall, it was a light and enjoyable piece of Boxing Day children's drama. I wonder what effect it would have had on me if I was still in school. Would I have even been interested in watching it? Perhaps it would have been something illicit I would have hidden my viewing of, much like the Clueless TV series years ago. Being afraid of looks from my parents, wondering why I was interested in such a thing and probably making fun of me a little. At least it would have been something to think about and I may not have felt ashamed. It's worth it just to let you know that there's someone out there like you or something that you can believe in.  

Clueless

I would now like to share with you all a film that had a tremendous effect on my development and may in fact have been my first foray into TG. Clueless (1995) starred Alicia Silverstone as Cher Horowitz, a teenager living in Beverley Hills. The film was a take on Jane Austen's Emma and one night in 1995 I went to see it. I was in my late teens and cut a lesson in school to catch the film on its last day. No-one wanted to come with me so I went alone and ended up being the only person in the cinema. Even one of the ushers came in and sat with me for a while and I felt ashamed of watching such a girlie movie.

So why did I watch it? Well it just hit something in me; the language they used and their overall look. Plus I was crushing a little on Silverstone. In the following weeks I started to draw myself as the characters from the film using their poses on the main poster - so that was basically my head on their bodies. I actually made myself sick doing it; such was my excitement that I gave myself a cold. Of course being a teenage boy I should have had another, um, outlet for that energy but I was a bit late in that area. I loved those drawings but these days I don't know what to do with them. They're hidden away in a folder and I'm torn between destroying them lest someone find them or keeping them preserved because they are pieces of my past.

Clueless (1995) main theatrical poster

In addition to the drawings I tried writing letters as Cher, using all the language and loved repeating lines from the movie into the mirror. A year later the TV series started with Rachel Blanchard making a fine replacement for Alicia Silverstone as Cher. It was quite a shock to see her later turn up in Peep Show. For the time that it was on, Clueless was my dirty little viewing secret but further exposure to that world was welcome. If I could do any cosplay at all, it would be Cher's yellow suit from the movie. I would love to wear that outfit for a while and pretend to be a hip Californian teen.

Perfect in Plaid

Last Friday I went to a quote along showing of the film and it was so much fun to be watching it on the big screen again. In the intervening years it has become such a well loved film and it will always hold a place in my heart and such a big influence in developing my desires.

Ok, so that's me audi!