The latest from Toronto drag icon Pearle Harbour is a sad, wild, itty bitty little tragicomedy staged in a hidden bar in the swanky Royal York hotel that is barely big enough to walk through. It’s surreal, it’s uncomfortable, it’s wacky, it’s depressing. It may be a masterpiece.

Justin Miller’s alter ego is so finely tuned a character creation that she survives translation through time and place while remaining relentlessly herself. Pearle’s backstory and current ailments shift but her heart remains the same- fabulous, broken, irreverent, yearning. Miller is a brilliant writer (there’s a run about Jesus and Judas in a gay club that plays like an O’Neill tragedy) and a great dramatic actor beyond his drag proficiency. In the hyper-intimate setting of the House of York bar, the nuance of his personal performance shines through the bouffon absurdity of Pearle’s persona.

Often appearing solo, Pearle is joined in her bar by the bartender she calls Lloyd (Sam Kruger, superb), a wry and wiry foil whose exasperation and care anchor Pearle’s exploits as he determinedly tries to get her to drink a glass of water.

Bombastically silly, at times dark as pitch, but ultimately merciful towards its titular flawed heroine, Pearle Harbour Walks Into a Bar is tender, tragic, and unforgettable.