(Image: Pearl Lam)
From Todd Matthews
Actor and comedian Pearl Lam has been thinking a lot about reality television’s effect on its cast members, viewers, and the larger culture—all of which has resulted in her solo show XXX Island, premiering this month at 18th & Union on Capitol Hill. The show centers on “It Girl” Amethyst Crystal, newly arrived at XXX Island to film the hottest new dating reality show promising Instagram fame and lucrative branding deals. Instead, she finds a hellscape of producer manipulation and drug-induced hallucinations.
“It’s like Man vs. Wild and Too Hot to Handle if they had a child,” Lam explained during an interview at a local coffee shop. “It’s a 60-minute comedy with dramatic elements—a dramedy, but I hate that word. Amethyst Crystal has to last 30 days on nothing but a fully stocked mini-bar while uncovering things about herself that she has kept hidden for a very long time. It’s absurd and off the wall, but it’s also a commentary about fame. I think most artists will go through a period where they question whether they’re doing their art for the art or the fame. There’s no shame in wanting to be famous, but when you knock on that door, you’re going through a passageway and won’t come out yourself.”
Capitol Hill theatergoers have seen Lam perform with comedian Woody Shticks in Put Your Hands Together and in Pacific Play Company’s Summer Magic: Tales of Revenge Playwrights Festival—both at 18th & Union—and in Strawberry Theatre Workshop’s Drowning at 12th Avenue Arts. Also, you’ve probably seen her in a widely aired Taco Time commercial showcasing her comedic chops. Lam shared her thoughts on reality TV and what audiences can expect from XXX Island.
Q: What are two reasons why people should see your show?
A: You’ll laugh or your money back. That’s a hard sell. I feel like I can’t say that. One, it’s like a cabaret show on psychedelics or steroids. I play a bunch of different characters. It gets crazy. Two, it’s a very timely piece. We’re coming out of the WGA and SAG strikes. We’re trying to be more conscious of the media we’re consuming. This show makes you think about the extent to which you perform as a person or a citizen—especially if you’re an artist. It’s been nice to hear people who’ve read the script tell me this is a question they confront as an artist: Am I doing this for the art or fame? Our culture is so obsessed with fame.
Q: Do you watch reality TV?
A: I love reality TV. I watch Man vs. Wild, 90 Day Fiancé, all the Gordon Ramsay series, and anything on Discovery+ and TLC. I can’t make fun of reality TV because it’s palatable and easy to consume. I judge people on reality TV and find enjoyment in someone who is deviant. I think XXX Island makes you look at what media you consume. With reality TV shows—especially the dating ones—a lot of the cast is gorgeous and hot; there’s a very heterosexual narrative. A lot of theory goes into reality TV—narratives it enforces and stereotypes it upholds, why it’s a guilty pleasure, why we view sadism as a spectacle, and what we contribute to the world when we consume this type of trash TV. I’d love for people to be more conscious of their media consumption and, in turn, look at what that does to themselves as presenting individuals in the world.
Q: Did you come to any revelations about why we watch reality TV?
A: The show’s themes primarily revolve around performance. Right now, we’re performing a version of ourselves. I think that’s interesting. On a reality TV show, which we all know isn’t real, you’re performing a version of yourself. Viewer complicity is a big theme, as well. I want people to think about what narratives they contribute to while watching reality TV. Are you finding enjoyment because you think someone is, for lack of a better word, a freak? I would never do something like that. So, I’m good. I’m better than them. On the flip side, there is some level of resonance, connection, and sympathy with what we see on the screen.
Q: Would you ever appear on a reality TV show?
A: No. I’m too scared of losing complete control and not getting any say in how they depict me. People are mean online. I don’t want to do that. Except for Naked and Afraid. I would love to be naked and afraid.
XXX Island runs Jan. 18-20 at 7:30 p.m. at 18th & Union (1406 18th Ave. Learn more at 18thandunion.org.
Capitol Hill resident Todd Matthews is a writer, editor, and journalist whose work has appeared in more than two dozen publications in print and online over the past 25 years.
