David Mills
Riot Act!
Martuni’s, San Francisco, CA, April 6, 2025
Reviewed by Steve Murray
The apocalypse just wouldn’t be any fun without the rapier-wit ruminations of actor/comic/performance artist David Mills, who was in San Francisco for two shows as part of his “four-show national tour.” After decades in London, Mills moved back to NYC, and his acclimation to the city wasn’t as joyous as you might have thought. With his silver-tongued signature and very droll manner, he launched into a nightmarish description of a stroll in uptown Manhattan replete with rats, feces, homeless drug addicts, and children selling Chicklets. His harangue was intermixed with “Native New Yorker,” a 1977 soul-dance hit.
Nothing falls off Mills’ radar, including scathing comments on LGBTQIA+ political correctness. “How did we get stuck with asexuals?” he asked. He snarked on drag brunches, children’s parties, Shen Yun (Chinese Trump-loving Rockettes), and San Francisco’s Civic Center (Beyond the Thunderdome). He segued into Oscar Brown, Jr.’s “The Snake,” asking us to decide which character he was—the foolish woman who saved a snake or the reptile who, living up to his nature, killed her.
Referring to his NYC woes, Mills’ philosophy was that the city will resolve itself. He’s thrilled to be there, and he riffed on the number of one-line roles for which he’s auditioned and was rejected. That led to his cover of “You Can’t Win” from The Wiz with its message: “You can’t win, Child, you can’t break even, and you can’t get out of the game.” Self-diagnosed with rage disorder, Mills focused his laser-sharp critiques on Katy Perry’s going into space, his having to find new friends after he had alienated all his old ones, and his new drugs of choice, fentanyl and Adderall, which must be safe because they’re being prescribed for children.
Mills created a dark, disturbing character: an older gay man well past his prime, trolling the gay scene and hoping for love but settling for a one-night stand. It was a sad observance that led to his cover of “Something Cool,” June Christy’s signature tune about sexual tension and emotional complexity. It was a very smart mashup and made total sense.
Russell Deason accompanied on piano, and Mills closed his set with a “MAGA national anthem,” James McMurty’s “Choctaw Bingo,” a rambling honky-tonk tune full of wild comic characters. I worked with David in the late 1990s during his San Francisco days, and I saw then the flashes of brilliance that he has honed and wonderfully realized in his current work. He has continued the unapologetic legacies of Lenny Bruce, Mort Sahl, and more recently, Scott Capurro. His style was in-your-face tastelessness—sexually vulgar at times, but always original and wickedly funny.
