Booze, laughs and rock n’ roll has been the mantra of Queen’s Players since their incarnation in the early 1900s, and their fall show was no exception.

At the biannual event, students are invited to the Mansion to laugh at raunchy humour and enjoy singing and a phenomenal live band. 

The latest addition to Queen’s Players’ long line of epic shows, The Big Bad Wolf of Deck the 

Halls Street, doesn’t disappoint. Because the fine details of the show are kept secret until audiences see the show for themselves, we won’t reveal the plot. 

Members of the cast and crew are sworn to secrecy over the plot and characters to ensure all students get the best experience possible.

That doesn’t mean there aren’t caricatures of pop culture references, from celebrities to your favourite fictional characters, and sex jokes so quick you’d feel their whiplash. The cast and crew of Queen’s Players have outdone themselves with their latest instalment. 

It is a credit to the cast — as performers and writers — that the jokes land whether a spectator is sober or inebriated. The sexual humour of Players is most of what makes it so funny, but the show has upped its game by having some dark comedy and politically-charged humour as well.

With a wide variety of genres and time periods, there’s something for musical tastes of all types, from traditional 80s anthems by The Police and Queen to recent pop hits. 

Of course, the music would be nothing more than hilarious karaoke if it weren’t for the instrumentals of the Players live band, who help the performers blossom from ordinary Queen’s students into rock stars.  

In the Mansion’s intimate upstairs lounge, the Players crowd the stage in their various carefully choreographed formations. 

It’s a testament to choreographers Katie Ross and Daniella Leacock for using the space so well. Although it was all very sexual in nature, the dancing never felt boring. 

There was a good variety in moves that made watching the cast entertaining, no matter who was on stage.

The Players aren’t just an enthusiastic group of people putting on a show, however — they’re also the second largest charitable organization at Queen’s.

According to Kayla Cayabyab, the director of marketing for Queen’s Players, their 2014-15 fundraising season was a success.

“Queen’s Players donated almost $17,000 to various local, national, and international charities, including QJUMP, on campus, and Femme International, which is a Canadian non-profit,” Cayabyab said. 

Because the show opens on Remembrance Day, all proceeds from opening night ticket sales will go to the Kingston branch of the Royal Canadian Legion’s Poppy Trust Fund, according to Vice President Administration Evelyn Popiel. The charity provides financial assistance to veterans in the Kingston community.

 “A lot of people are drawn to Players because of the drinking and the comedy … but any organization that takes all of that magnetism with everybody and thinks of it as an opportunity to give back to so many different organizations, is an organization worth being a part of,” cast member Rachel Manson said.

Over the past few years, Queen’s Players has gifted the Queen’s community with absolute hilarity and mosh-worthy rock music, but they’ve also become a charity that uses its crowd-pleasing formula of drinks, music and sexual innuendos to give back to the people who really need it. 

They sold out tickets to The Big Bad Wolf of Deck the Halls Street in five hours, so they must be doing it right.