At long last, I have seen Avenue Q. I’ve been dying to check out the Tony-award winning rock musical for half a decade now, but I never could time a NYC show properly and it took this long to make it to Toronto. So, I was super psyched to score tix last week. As promised, it was hilarious and properly scandalous. So if you’re near the gorgeous Elgin Theatre in the next two months, make like it’s Winners—you should go.

For those who haven’t heard of the show, here’s a quick, low-spoiler breakdown. Avenue Q is the story of a young college grad named Princeton who moves to NYC with stars in his eyes only to face the harsh realities and economies of grown-up life. The twist is that Princeton, like two-thirds of the Ave Q cast, is a puppet. Despite the disclaimer printed on every poster and program, these puppets are obviously inspired by familiar characters from your childhood. But instead of the sunshine and roses of Sesame Street, the Avenue Q puppets and their human friends sing songs like “Everyone’s a Little Bit Racist” and are coached through cartoon lessons on words like Schadenfreude: “It’s German for happiness at the misfortune of others…like straight A students getting Bs or exes getting STDs.” Music is also used to teach the audience (though of course, all of you know this) that recipe searches, photo uploading and social networking aside, at the end of the day, the Internet is for porn.

The character we have on the left here is Lucy the Slut, who throws a wrench into Princeton’s budding romance with the sweet Kate Monster. There is, as promised, full-on puppet nudity, not to mention the revealing secrets of straight-laced Rod and goofy Nicky, two male puppets who have lived together in happy asexuality—until now.

You guys are going to think I’m a furry or something—first I post about my fondness for massive plush lesbian Sasquatches and today, I’m here talking about more puppet sex. Maybe I am and maybe I’m not. Maybe after you see Avenue Q, your favourite sports team mascot will look just a little bit different, you know what I mean?