Toronto Fringe Review: Gay For Pay with Blake & Clay

Welcome to a world of satire, welcome to Convention Productions’ Gay for Pay with Blake and Clay. An ironic display where Blake (Daniel Krolik) and Clay (Jonathan Wilson) teach an acting class to help straight men land queer roles. 

The satire is abundant, obvious, and top tier. From Wilson’s portrayal of a Hollywood acting coach still riding the high of playing an extra in that one movie, to Krolik’s over the top and wide-eyed explanations. Together, a seven-part seminar is created that breaks down the basics of acting gay for the screen or theatre. 

Each part is wildly different, leaving an audience guessing what topic will unravel next. But, it’s better not to know. The title of each segment appearing on the screen at the back of the stage made for an uproar of laughter. Every. Single. Time. There was a giddiness present in the audience of what was to come, thinking this one must be better than the last. Which it was. 

The performance ranged from impersonations to audience interaction to a friendly sit-down conversation inspired by the birds and the bees. Not to mention the variety of humour at play - wit, pop culture references, bold and relatable commentary filtered the show. With no shortage of chemistry between the pairing, their back-and-forth banter made for a discord of laughter.

All this satire came to a screeching halt when Krolik stepped forward with an intensely beautiful break from irony. Pausing from the overly optimistic character to speak honestly about the representation of the gay community in the arts. A never-ending cycle broke from his lips about being ‘not enough this’ or ‘too much that.’ Ultimately, what he wants is accountability - if a straight man is going to play a queer role, be true to the community.

Gay For Pay with Blake & Clay is on now until July 16 as part of the 2022 Toronto Fringe Festival.
Find show times and tickets here.