She is the bus at the centre of Musical Theatre Dunedin’s production of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, which will take place in the Regent Theatre.
And, like some of the actors on stage, she too is "a bit of a diva" and has a reputation for being "more than a little cantankerous", Musical Theatre Dunedin spokeswoman Lynda Wright-Sear said.
The bus prop is similar to the one that was used in the launch of the show in Sydney and gave the backstage crew nightmares.
"She had a history of roaring into life when she shouldn’t and going where she shouldn’t on stage.
"She was a nightmare for backstage crew in Sydney.
"She’s a bit of a diva herself — it’s all about me, the show is named after me."
Fortunately the bus used at the Regent will not be the same one, she said.
The bus is part of two 12m-long shipping containers full of set and costumes that aim to "knock Dunedin’s frocks off".
Production and theatre staff spent much of the weekend unpacking and assembling all the props.
Mrs Wright-Sear said the cast would start rehearsing on stage with the equipment this week.Some of the costumes were so large and heavy, they would not fit through the dressing-room doors. They had to be connected to cables backstage and lowered on to cast members.
"Because it is quite a technical show and involves the bus and three divas flying in and out on cables all the time, we have to do a lot of rehearsal with the equipment," she said.
The show runs at the Regent Theatre from May 3-12.
