Queer Comedy Series Dyketopia Is Denver's Lesbian Paradise

"The overlap between Hey Mamas and Lesbros could sometimes be a circle, depending on where you're at," Lee Robinson (they/them) says to Kate McLachlan (she/her) as the two debate the merits of the "Lesbro" classification in between conversations about emotional-support T-shirts and checkered bucket hats. The humorous rambling is part of a segment for Robinson and McLachlan's weekly podcast, Dyketopia.

The podcast blossomed from the duo's queer comedy variety show, which the comedians first performed as a backyard skit in July 2021. Since its recent inception, the Denver show has become an unquestionable success — it sold out the Oriental Theater and received a grant from Eventbrite, and in October 2022, Robinson and McLachlan threw a Dyketopia festival on a queer-owned farm, complete with friend speed dating and a petting zoo. The pair is even taking the show on the road for upcoming performances in Los Angeles and NYC later this year.

"Each year we've had greater and greater heights," Robinson says. "That's the success that you would dream of, and I don't think when we started the show we had that kind of [vision]."

The comedy show began with a simple goal: to create a safe, fun environment for queer people — a rare commodity in a performance scene that can often uses homophobia, transphobia, racism and sexism to generate laughs. Some comedians even lean into their being labeled transphobic, such as Dave Chappelle in his latest Netflix comedy special, The Closer, in which he also makes fun of people in wheelchairs.

"Even though we've made a lot of progress in a lot of ways, it's still something that we see all the time. And that's why instead of being continually frustrated at the way things are, let's do something different," Robinson says. "Let's create a space for people to come together and have fun and know that they don't have to worry about getting punched down, because that was my feeling when I joined the scene."
Dyketopia is a game show swirled with standup comedy and sprinkled with improv and drag, creating a smorgasbord performance that's utterly unique and entirely gay. Robinson and McLachlan let their imaginations run uninhibited and spend a copious amount of time dreaming up games that poke at queer tropes while simultaneously building a sense of camaraderie. McLachlan's personal favorite game is Battle of the Mental Illnesses, where people with ADHD compete with people with depression in a trivia and relay race tournament.

"We didn't really know if people were going to receive it well," she says. "And when they did, it just felt great. It's fun to embrace mental illness in that way."

"You destigmatize it, and that's building a community on trust and is everything that we talk about," Robinson adds. "It's okay to play with these things that are true about our community. Obviously there's no one way to be queer, but I think there are some things that are pretty harmless to play with."

Other games include Astro-Curious, where McLachlan and Robinson try to guess an audience member's astrological sun sign based on their answers to various questions. Battle of the Signs, Choose Your Own Gayventure, Who Can Pack the U-Haul the Fastest, The Dyke Is Right and a Kate McLachlan Book Club are also on the docket.

"My name is Kate McLachlan, and there is an author out there and her name is Kate McLachlan. She's this seventy-year-old lesbian who writes lesbian time-travel books," McLachlan says with a laugh. "So we've read some of her things out loud at our show. We do dramatic readings, and that's always moronic and really fun." The time-travel series is titled Rip Van Dyke.

The duo's inspiration is endless, and new games are always on the way. Eventually, Robinson dreams of writing a "really ridiculous" lesbian play, assigning roles to members of the audience and live-directing it on stage.
Dyketopia's side-busting game show antics have earned it a loyal following in Denver, creating a community of people McLachlan and Robinson describe as well-dressed, respectful and excited to laugh. As always, the pair is looking forward to the next Dyketopia show; titled Spring Awakening, it takes place on Friday, March 8, at the Oriental Theater.

"It's nice to be able to be in a queer community space that's focused on releasing and having levity and having a good laugh together," Robinson says. "I think that helps people make friends. People have also found love at our shows, which is really cool.

"We're carving out these spaces for people to feel safe and meet other people like them...in spaces like comedy where folks have been historically excluded or are made fun of," they add. "There are so many people we meet who are like, 'Dyketopia is the first comedy show I've ever felt safe going to.'"

"That's my favorite compliment to receive," McLachlan says.

Dyketopia Spring Awakening, 8 p.m. Friday, March 8, Oriental Theater, 4335 West 44th Avenue. Tickets are $25