Dream Girls Cabaret Drag Show 

Drag in Denver is experiencing a resurgence lately, and Dream Girls at Hamburger Mary's stands out as the kind of show you could take your mother to. Dream Girls cheerfully acknowledges that at least 50 percent of its audiences are straight folks looking to step out of their comfort zones. The girls mingle with the crowd before the show so they have a rapport with the audience before hitting the stage; the emcee's intro helps folks to know what to expect from the show; and by the end of the hour and a half, the girls are getting requests to pose for pictures with happy audience members.

Dream Girl Britney Michaels loves the cabaret setting, saying with a wink, "It's intimate, but not too close." To complement the space, Michaels and the other female illusionists produce a more theatrical show. "It always has a theme and starts and ends with group production numbers, and we have professional costumes," she says.

Tonight's theme is March "Mad"-ness, for which Michaels says she and the girls will be pulling out "sports-related numbers, obviously, but we'll also play on the "Mad" in madness -- so, bitchy, angry, man-hater songs, too."

Dream Girls perform the first, third and fourth Friday of every month at Mary's, 700 East 17th Avenue. Shows are at 9 p.m. Fridays; there's an $8 cover, and attendees can get dinner and drinks at their table from the friendly staff. Call 303-832-1333 or check www.hamburgermarysdenver.com for more information. — By Michelle Baldwin

Website: http://www.hamburgermarysdenver.com

Price: $8