Gothic Ray of Sunshine is a serious comedy show about queerness and growing up, created by Dougie K Powell. Plans for hosting the show at Loukko started pre-COVID and have been postponed more times than we can remember. Now as we enter the new old normal, GRoS is taking the stage with 7 shows throughout October and November and we can’t wait! The premiere is Friday October 8th. Get your ticks here
Hi Dougie! How are you? How do you feel about finally getting your show out there?
Hi! I’m well, but very frazzled. It’s so strange that this show has been up in the air for so long during the pandemic and now is finally going ahead. I’m so excited for it, it’s just rather hard to believe with over a year of planning it’s finally happening. I can only hope it’ll be worth the wait for everyone else.
Your show is a comedy show, but about some serious subjects. Did you think of other formats or other subjects? Why are you fond of comedy? Do queer and comedy make a good pair?
This is actually something I touch on in GRoS. I’ve studied many forms of theatre, but comedy was just something I was comfortable in since it’s intention is always just to bring joy. I don’t think this could have been anything other than comedy because that’s the way I feel comfortable performing. And I like to think I’m good at it!
I do think Queer and Comedy go well, since comedy brings people together. It’s a way we can bond together as a community and I’m so proud to be a part of that.
Why do you feel like we need to talk about these things?
To be blunt, I can’t shy away from the hard things that happened to me. They’re part of how I evolved as a person. So if this is going to be an autobiographical show, I need to at least bring these serious things up. There’s also the matter of how important this is to the queer community.
Every time I’m at a queer event, there is always someone else who has been through the same thing. There is nothing I say in this show which isn’t a common problem in our community.
Hearing others know how it feels to be homeless or discriminated against by doctors, makes me feel better about it. I really hope I can do that for someone else.
It’s also why I feel Loukko was the best venue for this. I want to talk about these things, but I want the audience to know it’s okay to slip away if they feel uncomfortable or just need a break.
You’ve been collaborating on this with Juuso Kekkonen and will have guest appearances from Zach Chamberlaine. How did these things come about?
This whole thing was Juuso’s idea. I’m not going to dance around that! (Not that I’m trying to blame him for me doing this.) I was having a dinner party, he was there and at some point he asked if I wanted to do this.
But I’m so proud and honoured that he wanted to collaborate with me. It’s been so wonderful to work with him and has already helped me grow as a performer.
Zach felt like an obvious choice to work with for this! We’re both British, queer comedians living in Helsinki who know the pain of growing up ginger in the British school system. I’ve performed with him a few times and I’m so happy to have him here.
What do you expect from people coming to see your show – what kind of people do you think need to see this?
To be honest, I’d be happy to have an audience who’s just happy to get out of the house after two years of quarantine! But I’m also thrilled that anyone wants to come and hear my story and have a good time. I think my show is most appealing to a queer audience, since they would relate a lot to what we talk about in the show.
Tickets 7€ – 15€ through Eventbrite, except a pay-what-you-can in cash show on Wednesday 10.11. On evening shows that start at 19:00, Loukko and Loukko’s bar stay open until 22:00. The show deals with subjects and issues such as drug use, abortion, violence and abuse including discrimination and abusive language, hatred towards sexual and gender minorities, mental health issues, references to sex. The language of the show is English. The suggested age limit for the audience is 16+. The bar is open, but the space is not K18.
- Friday 8.10. 19:00 – 21:00
- Thursday 14.10. 19:00 – 21:00
- Saturday 23.10. 19:00 – 21:00
- Friday 29.10. 19:00 – 21:00
- Sunday 31.10. 17:00 – 19:00
- Wednesday 10.11. 18:00 – 20:00
- Saturday 13.11. 19:00 – 21:00