Photo credit Santiago Felipe.

Presented by BenDeLaCreme
Created by BenDeLaCreme & Jinkx Monsoon
Written and directed by BenDeLaCreme 
With additional writing by Jinkx Monsoon
Choreographed by Chloe Albin
Original compositions by Major Scales
Lyrics by BenDeLaCreme, Jinkx Monsoon & Major Scales
Featuring: Chloe Albin, Isaiah Brooks, Jace Gonzalez, Jim Kent, Ruby Mimosa, Derrick Paris, and Gus Lanza as “Hunky the Elf”

November 22, 2025
Wang Theater
270 Tremont St
Boston, MA 02116

Review by Kitty Drexel

BOSTON — It’s nearly Thanksgiving, and the Winter Solstice is a little over a month away. You know what that means. It’s time to gird your chestnuts and deck your lover’s halls because Jinkx Monsoon and BenDeLaCreme are touring their 8th annual Holiday Show across the U.S.! This year, they brought their strange, jolly, and unusual stage shenanigans to Boston’s Wang Theater stage in the most titillating way possible: through the horror anthology, The Gingerbread House of Horrors! 

In a change from previous shows, Jinkx and DeLa aren’t fighting each other over who has the most holiday spirit (it’s DeLa). 2025 brought many changes to the U.S., so our heroines are united against the forces of evil haunting their country. No, not the presidential administration, silly (although that, too). This year, Jinkx and DeLa fight to survive four mini-traumatic episodes. We watch as they have themselves a scary ‘lil Christmas with Hunky the Elf, and their six charismatic dancers. Together, they’ll discover that the real evil haunting their holidays was late-stage capitalism all along.  

Jinkx and DeLa’s adventures are introduced by Mr. Fir (a spoopy Jeff Hiller whose voice is as fervent as Mr. Fir’s evergreen branches), an animated Christmas tree host that’s equal parts plump, cuddly Crypt Keeper and Jack Skellington, whose video interludes are played on a screen monitor above the stage. Mr. Fir reads from a large book of holiday tales that floats suspiciously above his lap. We don’t know how or why the book is floating, but we do know he won’t put it down until he’s finished telling his tales. 

His first story is “Jinkx/Mary’s Baby,” a body horror fantasy of sacrilegious proportions. DeLa is casually espousing the virtues of Christmas when a visiting angel (puppetry by Erik Andor/ Andor Studio) with an important message is accidentally knocked into Jinkx’s midriff. It inspires the musical numbers “Virgin Had A Baby,” a song about a very important 12-year-old with no agency, and “It’s Beginning to Look Apocalyptic,” to the tune of “It’s Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas.” #HailSanta 

The next episode is “Jingle Bell Swap,” the story of how Jinkx is entered by the one person she doesn’t want inside her: DeLa. In a freak stage accident, the two switch bodies and decide to perform each other’s numbers anyway. In a nice change that caters to fans of a naughtier brand of unrestrained femme hijinks, DeLa sings “Rud-Olf,” a jolly BDSM parody about Rudolf the red-nosed reindeer set to Prince’s “Gett Off.” A gyrating Ruby Mimosa brought tidings of comfort, joy, and booty while driving Santa’s sleigh.

After intermission and before the next segment, we were treated to a mandatory KPop Demon Hunters parody: “(My Little) Santa Claus” to the tune of “Soda Pop.” Abs were on full display. The choreography was popping. This segment led directly into “Rise of the Rodudoo,” a cautionary tale about the dangers of AI featuring a Christmas present that should be delivered to the bottom of the ocean to rust. We’re reminded that some toys aren’t; dolls must always be protected; and pedophilia is always wrong, no matter whose list you’re on.   

The last story, “Hunklins,” gives Hunky the Elf center stage. Jinkx and DeLa learn that Hunky’s lean, muscular physique is obtained through discipline and sacrifice: No food after 10 PM, and don’t get Hunky wet. Innuendo implied. Jinkx, DeLa, and Hunky experience an unexpected virgin birth of six capricious babies and take responsibility for Hunky’s mustachioed offspring.  

By the end of the night, Jinkx and DeLa and exhausted and spent. They had just enough energy to find a moral for their story and to make it poignantly political. Times are tough. Many people in the U.S. believe drag queens and the queer community shouldn’t exist. Some of those people have made it their mission to make our lives miserable; the cruelty is the point. But, if we’ve learned anything from this year’s Jinkx & DeLa Holiday Show, it’s this: The horrors persist, and so do we. Jinkx and DeLa remind us that laughter is resistance. Don’t let the haters take your sense of humor or irony this Thanksgiving. Happy Winter Solstice, and to all a happy, Christmas-marginalizing holiday season! 

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