Reuben Kaye

Reuben Kaye (né Krum; born 22 September 1984) is an Australian singer, writer and comedian. Kaye's career is primarily based in the UK, but he has performed at comedy festivals internationally, including in Melbourne, Montréal, and Edinburgh.

Kaye is recognizable for his signature drag makeup, and often performs with a full backing band. His performances combine stand-up comedy and cabaret, and are queer and political. Kaye's 2023 Edinburgh fringe show was the second-highest reviewed show at the festival.

He has also appeared on television programmes like Spicks and Specks, The Project, and Celebrity Letters and Numbers. Kaye has cited Wayne County & the Electric Chairs, Patti LaBelle, and Maryanne Faithful as some of his inspirations.

Kaye was born in 1984 to Jewish immigrants, and was raised in the Melbourne suburb of Kew. Kaye's father, who was an artist, emigrated from post-war Warsaw, and his mother emigrated from East Berlin before the Berlin Wall was built. He was diagnosed with ADHD as a child, but his parents chose to not put him on medication. Kaye came out as gay at age 14, and faced bullying from his peers at school which left him with a scar on his eyebrow. He studied musical theatre at the Victorian College of the Arts, and moved to London at age 25, where he became more involved in the cabaret scene.

Live performances

Kaye began performing cabaret while living in Melbourne, but became more involved in the scene after moving to London. Kaye began wearing makeup during his performances in 2011, attributing the choice as a channel for his material, rather than self-expression.

His first solo show, Success Story, debuted in 2017, and was performed at the Perth and Adelaide Fringe festivals. In 2019, Kaye created the self-titled show Reuben Kaye, as well as a late-night variety show The Kaye Hole, and brought both shows to the Edinburgh Fringe. Kaye returned to performances in 2021 after the COVID pandemic and vocal surgery with his new show The Butch is Back, which he performed through December 2023, including in at the Edinburgh and Melbourne comedy festivals, and at a nearly month-long residency in London's Southbank Centre. Starting at the Perth fringe in January 2024, Kaye began performing his new show Apocalipstick.

Television appearances

In 2019, Kaye appeared on British television on the Channel 4 show Kids React to Drag. He has also appeared on other UK shows, such as The Apprentice: You’re Fired in 2023.

Kaye has appeared on Australian television as a contestant on Celebrity Letters and Numbers, as well as on the ABC music quiz show Spicks and Specks.

In 2023, Kaye appeared on an episode of the Channel 10 news and talk show programme The Project, where he controversially joked about Jesus: "I love any man who can get nailed for three days straight and come back for more!" The Australian Communications and Media Authority reportedly received over 200 complaints about the incident. He received significant backlash for this both from publications like the Daily Mail, as well as from social media users, some of whom sent him death threats. Subsequent live performances by Kaye were postponed due to protests against him.

Podcasts

Since 2019, Kaye has hosted Come to Daddy, a podcast about the parental upbringing of various comedian guests, including Rosie Jones, Desiree Burch, and Daniel Sloss. At the 2023 Just for Laughs festival, Kaye hosted the first live version of the podcast with guest Urzila Carlson.

Kaye has also guested on numerous other podcasts, including Jordan Gray's Transplaining, Catherine Bohart and Helen Bauer's Trusty Hogs, and Abigoliah Schamaun and Joe Wells's Neurodivergent Moments.

In 2021, Kaye won the Best Cabaret award from both the Perth and Adelaide fringe festivals, and was nominated for the Most Outstanding Show award from the Melbourne Comedy Festival. In 2022, The Butch Is Back won three Green Room Awards for Best Cabaret Artist, Best Production and Best Musical Direction. In 2023, it also was nominated for NextUp's Biggest Award in Comedy, and placed second on the British Comedy Guide's list of the highest-reviewed shows of the 2023 Edinburgh fringe.