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AUDIENCE REVIEW: Gable Couch’s ‘Le Monocle’ invites you to the the Queer Club
Company:
Gable Couch
Performance Date:
October 3rd, 2026
Freeform Review:
Cigarette smoke blurs the outlines of dancing bodies, sweaty flesh swaying to the piano’s velvet notes as flashing lights preview a romance of free expression. Though the streets of Paris are dark, the clubs are vibrant homes of rich bodies and intimate, queer histories. Roaming eyes catch in the dimly lit club, and two strangers are pulled together in a cosmic trajectory, lost stars finding each other in the dusk and creating a constellation. Skin against skin, whispers bracing cheeks like honey, they share names above the mellow tune. For the first time, they both realize they are not alone.
In this evening-length debut, choreographer Gable Couch premieres Le Monocle as an exploration of queer community. The show follows a young queer woman as they are welcomed into the sapphic nightclub, Le Monocle. Taken under the wing of the owner and her friends, they are immersed in a world of glittering sensuality, supportive community, love, and heartbreak.
With a sensational, ten-person cast, the piece showcases sexuality as a vision for progress, where clubgoers can make family on the dance floor and discover their individuality. Couch’s unique movement style draws on Fosse, contemporary, and theatrical movement. Blending closed fists with rolling hips, long legs twirling in the air, and fingers reaching to interlock hands, Couch’s immersive vocabulary and directorial skills transform the studio into an enthralling world. The show includes music by La Femme that transports the audience into the club scene and classic notes by Edith Piaf that will linger long after the performance. While the show is a work of fiction, it draws from a long history grounded in queer resilience, discovery, and love.
In the 1920’s, Paris queer nightlife flourished, and Lulu de Montparnasse opened the lesbian club, Le Monocle. At the time, wearing a monocle was a common fashion statement in the club. This became a visual code of queerness worn by masculine women, similar to how many lesbians wear a carabiner today. When asked about the history working in parallel with the story of the show, Couch commented, “It’s important to understand a lot of queer history has been erased; this club has existed alongside the Moulin Rouge, and is [just] as historic.” While the show centers on love, it does not shy away from the unfortunate violence of antigay policing. Historically, this involved clubs being raided, patrons being arrested for “inappropriate clothing” (pants being worn by female-presenting people, for instance), and clubgoers forcibly being separated from their same sex partners. Despite this, queer community persisted, and Gable Couch’s creation, Le Monocle, is a tribute and love story to this resilience. Couch comments that, “This show is a small fraction of the queer community. It’s a little slice, and I hope it makes [the audience] think of the many other LGBTQ pockets that have had to show resilience in times of socio-political turmoil."
Le Monocle premieres at Spoke the Hub in Brooklyn on October 3rd at 7:30 pm. Tickets are available for purchase, and the cast hopes to see you in this electrifying showcase.
Author:
Kayleigh Duggan
