Category: Cabaret Review

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REVIEW: Ali McGregor’s LATE-NITE VARIETY-NITE NIGHT

Comedy cabaret compendium is a nite to remember

By Bradley Storer

Introduced by her sullen handmaiden Flaxen McGinty (Virginia Ginty), the radiant Ali McGregor sauntered down through the audience, serenading us with sensual song and sublime vocals.

Ali McGregor

Although more than capable of entertaining us all by herself, the former Opera Australia leading lady took to the stage to present a rotating cast of comedians, burlesque and cabaret performers in what has become one of the main-stay events of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.

On this particular night there was a wonderful selection of talent on display. Matt Okine, last year’s Best Newcomer at the Comedy Festival, showed great comedic skill as he regaled us with the awkward tale of having an African father and a former Nazi Youth for a grandfather (‘he wasn’t Nazi enough that he killed Jews,’ Okine reassured us, ‘…Just enough to be pope’). With bright eyes and a cheeky smile, burlesque performer Agent Lynch unveiled an instrument McGregor later informed us was called a ‘vagilaphone’.

Renowned international cabaret duo EastEnd Cabaret dropped in for an exclusive performance, chanteuse Bernadette Byrne and her sidekick Victor Victoria raising the temperature of the evening with a saucy accordion cover of ‘I’m Too Sexy’. Comedian Dave Callan closed the night with a spontaneous, fully choreographed performance of Beyonce’s ‘Crazy in Love’, complete with back-up dancers, that brought down the house.

McGregor interspersed songs from her latest album throughout the show, including jazz and funk re-vamped versions of 80’s songs by The Prodigy and Salt ‘n’ Pepa. Her ‘buttress’ McGinty joined in on duets with her velvetly smooth voice, also taking centre stage herself to sing a cheeky tune dedicated to the virtues of her hand-crafted chair (to be understood in all its smutty glory, it must be seen in context). A true ‘late night’ show which combines ribaldry, entertainment and cheap low-brow humour all with a hint of classiness, a delicious cocktail of after-dark delights.

TIME: 10:30 (9:30 Sunday)

VENUE: The Famous Spiegeltent at the Arts Centre Melbourne, 100 St Kilda Rd

TICKETS: Thur/Sun $30, Fri/Sat $35, Conc Thur/Sun $25, Conc Fri/Sat $30, Group (6+) $25

BOOKING: www.ticketmaster.com.au, www.comedyfestival.com.au, Ticketmaster 1300 660 013, Arts Centre 1300 182 183, or at the venue.

Cabaret, Cabaret Review, Festivals, Whats On

REVIEW: Saturn Returns for MICF

Double act lifts a curse to cosmic comic heights

By Myron My

Returning for an encore season during the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, Saturn Returns is an intergalactic comic cabaret by musical comedy performers Lachlan MacLeod and Simon Abrahams.

Saturn Returns 1

Coming on stage in stellar shiny silver three-piece suits and ties, the two men delve into the “curse” of Saturn’s Return, where an orbiting Saturn comes back to the same point in the sky that it was in at the moment of your birth. Each time this happens, roughly every 30 years, we are said to enter a new phase of our lives, so it’s quite fitting that Abrahams has already experienced his own Saturn Return and MacLeod is fast approaching his.

MacLeod and Abrahams perform a dozen original songs – ranging from ballads to rap to boy band pop songs – about the highs and lows of turning 30. Gems include “One Grey Pube” which looks at the inevitability of turning old and “Does It Work Out In The End” where they question whether things will get better the older (and hopefully wiser) we become. At various times, they take to the ukulele and piano on stage to accompany their songs and further reveal their musical talents.

Having just turned 30 myself, I could unequivocally relate to everything they were singing about. The fear of having taken a wrong turn somewhere, finding someone to love, a career and wondering when it will all fall into place are thoughts that have crossed my mind many times.

The two have been working together for ten years, and it shows. Their energy and charm during Saturn Returns is magnetic and very natural. They would have to be one of the strongest and funniest duos I have seen in a very long time on the performance circuit.

If you’ve passed your 30s, go along and reminisce about the “hideous, painful and traumatic stage of (y)our lives”. If you’re still in your 20s, go along and take note of what’s waiting for you. Getting older is not all bad, especially when you have great entertainers like Abrahams and MacLeod singing songs and making jokes about it.

Venue: The Butterfly Club, 256 Collins St (entry via Carson Place), Melbourne

Season: Until 6 April | Tues-Wed, Sun 8:00pm, Thurs-Sat 9:00pm

Tickets: $25 Full | $20 Concession

Bookings: www.butterflyclub.com or 9690 2000

Cabaret, Cabaret Review, Events, Music, Performances, Whats On

Review: AMY ABLER is Pianodivalicious

Piano-playing punch and pizzazz

By Christine Moffat

Amy Abler – the woman who can play the piano with every part of her body!

While this statement is titillating (and true!), it does not do justice to Amy Abler’s talent or sense of fun.  The audience entered the theatre, and Abler was already on stage playing.  Explaining she’d hired herself as the pre-show performer, she began chatting with the crowd.  Once we were all in, and ready to go, Abler discovered we were unprepared – no feathers!  It’s true, not one of us had thought to bring along a big, fluffy feather.  Luckily the Piano-Diva had spares.

Pianodivalicious

This piano-confessional style show is old school, and ironically this makes for a refreshing change.  Abler is an accomplished pianist, and plays any style of music from classical to blues with passion and panache.  She reveals that for the better part of the last twelve years she has been a headline act on various cruise ships.  Happily, in the lovely intimate cabaret venue The Butterfly Club, not a hint of big-ship dinner theatre peeked through.

Abler’s stories are sometimes funny, sometimes sad, always interesting.  Her piano playing is faultless, and more importantly, got the whole audience bobbing and swaying and subconsciously ‘emoting’ with their feathers.  This is a seasoned entertainer who has not forgotten how to entertain.

Abler is based in Chicago, but when this show (hopefully) returns to Melbourne, head along for a slice of truly universal fun.  Her audience rapport is wonderful, and the show’s retro style fits like a comfy (albeit heavily sequinned) shoe.  Lovely.

Show information:

Pianodivalicious

Wednesday 20th March 2013

The Butterfly Club

Carson Place (just off Little Collins Street in the Melbourne CBD)

www.thebutterflyclub.com

www.pianodivalicious.com

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REVIEW: Isabel Hertaeg’s DEATH BY SOPRANO

Daring diva with a killer voice

By Christine Moffat

Isabel Hertaeg has a dream to be an operatic soprano, but she’s noticed that they don’t always have the best of luck.  Her theory is, if she can work out what keeps killing them off, she has some hope of surviving a role!

Death By Soprano

Hertaeg has serious soprano-envy, and this is a very good thing.  As a result, we were treated to a fabulous array of soprano deaths, without all those annoying tenors getting in the way to spoil it.

The show began with Hertaeg coming onstage as the tragic Ophelia, whose gory death details I won’t spoil.  Suffice to say, this reviewer’s sick sense of humour was switched on in the first three minutes of this show.  Once poor Ophelia is no more, Hertaeg outlines her approach: she will explain the A-Z of soprano deaths.  Accompanied wonderfully by Amy Abler, Hertaeg then starts her alphabetical annihilation with ‘A is for Avalanche’.

If it had gone wrong, this show could have turned into one big highbrow in-joke, with opera aficionados tittering away whilst the common folk looked on confused.  Instead, it turned out to be an intelligent concept, wrapped in a delightfully dark show, and decorated with Hertaeg’s wonderful voice.

The cute little prop jokes kept the comedy bubbling along, and the many, many deaths took care of the pathos.  Watch out for Brunhilde (a highlight), who ticks both the prop comedy and pathos boxes at once!

Although the show is a tragic comedy, with little quips sprinkled throughout, Hertaeg did not skimp on the opera.  Her performance of Butterfly’s aria in particular was intensely moving.  On top of being funny and having an amazing voice, Hertaeg also managed to sing in Italian, French, Russian, English and German.  I’m beginning to feel a little soprano-envy myself…

Show information:

Death by Soprano

Wednesday 20th March 2013

The Butterfly Club

Carson Place (just off Little Collins Street in the Melbourne CBD)

www.thebutterflyclub.com

Cabaret, Cabaret Review, Events, Performances

REVIEW: Naomi Price in RUMOUR HAS IT

Adele unplugged and – uncensored…?!

By Myron My

Rumour Has It is an intimate cabaret performance with Adele. Or in other words, cabaret artist Naomi Price has brought her critically-acclaimed show to Melbourne.She enters on stage with her trademark ginger-beehive hairstyle and for the next hour we are treated to an intimate encounter with this foul-mouthed, platinum-selling, Grammy and Golden Globe-winning songstress (and Price’s Adele makes sure we know all this!)

Naomi Price

It’s an evening of girl power with Beyonce, Spice Girls and Amy Winehouse cheekily introduced as people who inspired her or whom she respects, whereupon their songs are all mashed up with Adele’s own music. One of the highlights would therefore have to be seeing Price impersonating Adele impersonating Celine Dion and belting out ‘My Heart Will Go On’…

However, as with any worthy cabaret ‘tribute’ show, there are also a number of the artist’s great classics including ‘Set Fire To The Rain’, ‘Rumour Has It’ and ‘Rolling In The Deep’. However, the showstopper was ‘Someone Like You’ which we had to wait for, with the haunting tune on piano teasing us for quite some time. Once performed, the room was filled with silence as we took in the greatness of what we had just seen and heard. As Price/Adele stated, this is Adele’s song and she/she gives it everything she has.

The most frustrating thing as an audience member was having people coming in up to 25 minutes late into a 60-minute performance but Price did not let this affect her, having some hilarious haughty banter with the latecomers (“I thought you’d be on time to my show”) and making it all feel like it is a part of the performance.

Price’s Rumour Has It is an evening of sassy and witty fun, and if Melbourne gets to enjoy a return season, you really don’t want to get there late. Not only will you miss out on some great cabaret but you may inadvertently end up with the spotlight on you, and that’s probably not something Adele wants…

Venue: Chapel Off Chapel, 12 Little Chapel St, Prahran

Season: 8-9 Feb, 2013

Cabaret, Cabaret Review, Events, Music, Performances, Review, Theatre, Whats On

REVIEW: Camille O’Sullivan in THE RAPE OF LUCRECE

Disturbing and superb

By Bradley Storer

“We’re going to tell you the story of the Rape of Lucrece, a tale full of both beauty… and violence. Be warned – there may be a bit of singing.” With this simple introduction, Irish cabaret star Camille O’Sullivan launched us headfast into an evening of hearty and full-blooded (in more ways than one) story-telling. O’Sullivan, along with her collaborator and accompanist Feargal Murray, has taken Shakespeare’s classic poem and transformed it into what feels like a chamber opera written for a single voice. The performance, produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company, combines Shakespeare’s text in both spoken form and as songs set to original music by O’Sullivan and Murray.

Photo by Keith Pattison

The set is simple, consisting of a backdrop of several windows and the stage floor littered with numerous piles of manuscript. The only other element is the touching presence of two pairs of shoes at opposite ends of the stage – a pair of delicate white slippers, and a large pair of dark leather military boots, representing cleverly the characters of Lucrece and her rapist Tarquin.

O’Sullivan as a storyteller and actress is magnificent, beginning simply telling the narrative but slowly transforming before our eyes into both the menacing and malevolent Tarquin, and the innocent, tragic Lucrece. Filling the stage with her gargantuan presence, O’Sullivan paints the picture of the story and each of its characters effortlessly. With just a sardonic flick of her hand, she can make Shakespeare’s poetry as achingly and horrifically relevant as anything written today. Her wondrous singing voice can soothe and terrify in equal measure, ranging from a low seductive murmur to a full-bodied shriek of agony.

This is not an evening for the faint-hearted – the performance does not shy away from displaying the full horror of events, O’Sullivan so committedly and perfectly embodying the pain of rape and its aftermath that at times it is almost too horrible to watch. Even in Tarquin’s part of the narrative, O’Sullivan shows us the deep ambivalence and disgust which co-exists with the man’s darker impulses. The amazing lighting design throughout contributes massively to the many worlds, interior and exterior, within which the story plays out.

Do not come to this show looking for a relaxing night at the theatre – however at the end of the harrowing tale, we are left with not only sadness but also the deep, primeval pleasure of an epic tale told with immaculate skill.

Directed by Elizabeth Freestone

Dates: January 31st – February 10th , 8pm

Venue: The Sumner, Southbank Theatre, 140 Southbank Boulevard

Tickets: $85 / Conc $77 / Youth $33

Bookings: www.mtc.com.au or 03 8688 080

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REVIEW: Short+Sweet Cabaret 2012

Variety was never so sweet!

By Myron My

Short+Sweet is the biggest little arts festival in the world that celebrates ten-minute performances in theatre, cabaret and dance. Crammed into 19 days, there are roughly 100 original works performed. As with any variety show though, there are going to be some performances that are significantly stronger than others.

Short+Sweet Cabaret

My top choice of the Group A performances for the Short+Sweet Cabaret Festival would therefore be Good Grief performed by Sarah Gaul and Sophie Wright. There was obvious rapport between the two as they played thespian ‘frenemies‘ who are looking at building on their repertoire of tragedy to become better actors. Both women have great voices and songs that had the audience in stitches with laughter.

Another highlight was Amanda Buckley in Haley Burton: Ready to Role: her charming nature made the crowd warm to her immediately in this semi-improvised cabaret of a high-achieving understudy.

Quite possibly one of the last things I expected to ever see in cabaret would be a show about Oprah Winfrey but it happened at Short+Sweet with Oprahfication…the ULTIMATE interview. As Opraaaaaaaaah! Rachel Dunham’s resemblance was uncanny and her portrayal throughout of this talk show queen was spot on.

Each ten-minute cabaret also had some very talented musicians, be it pianists, drummers or guitarists. There were a few that stayed in my mind after the shows were completed so my mentions would have to go A Very Kitty Christmas’ Barnaby Reither, A Little bit of Little Pattie’s Cameron Thomas and Oprahfication…’s Shanon Whitelock.

The mind boggles in choosing what to see and that’s the great thing about Short+Sweet, having such a diverse range of ideas and concepts. There are many different stories to be told and all are created with passion and dedication.

Venue: Chapel Off Chapel, 12 Little Chapel Street  Prahran

Season: Until 8 December | various times

Tickets: From $25

Bookings: http://www.shortandsweet.org

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REVIEW: Fancy Meeting You at THE BUTTERFLY CLUB

Well-crafted cabaret nostalgia for the great jazz era

By Myron My

Fancy Meeting You is a cabaret set in a New York 1930’s jazz bar where the three employees of the bar – the Maitre D, the showgirl and the musician – share their stories of love to the beautiful music of Harold Arlen.

There is strong chemistry between the three stars, Amalie O’Hara, Kathleen Douglas and Izaak Lim as Maitre d’, Showgirl and Musician respectively while each character struggles with their own concept of love, for Miss Lucille (the Maitre d’) is pregnant and single, Maggie May Adams (the Showgirl) has a fleeting encounter with a stranger and Abe (the Musician) is losing the man he is in love with.

O’Hara is particularly strong as the Maitre d’ and demands your attention when she is on stage. In contrast, you have the aloof pretty showgirl in Douglas who offers the lighter moments of the show. Lim, who also performs some of the music, finds the nuances of his character and makes you feel the pathos he is trying to bring to the surface.

All three have strong voices, give exceptional performances when singing alone and complement each other when singing together. The great strength of Fancy Meeting You as cabaret is that the songs selected help further the story and show the feelings, desires and vulnerability of the characters. The accompanying piano skills of Tim Cunniffe are flawless and delightful throughout the show.

It wouldn’t be a homage to Harold Arlen without performing what is his most famous song, “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” – the song that even to this day gives me goose bumps when I hear it.

Despite its fame and frequent use in cabaret, the trio manage to evoke the same yearning here that Judy Garland did when she sang the song – an impressive achievement.

In its homage to the Great American Songbook, Fancy Meeting You has strong performances and tunes that leave you with a bittersweet feeling by the end of it. A rich cabaret experience.

Venue: The Butterfly Club, 204 Bank Street, South Melbourne

Season: Until 18 November | 7:00pm, Sun 6:00pm

Tickets: $23 Full | $20 Concession

Bookings: http://thebutterflyclub.com

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Review: KROWS BAR KABARET Presents NEWS FLASHERS

A bold satirical effort leaves little breathing space

By Myron My

In the revitalised Weimar-style political kabaret News Flashers, the audience are treated to a whirlwind of varied Australian issues and the way the media reports these through the use of ‘televised’ news reports, song and with the aid of sock puppets.

A lot of thought has gone into the production of News Flashers, and it is certainly a delight on the eyes. Old newspapers form the basis of the costumes, including trousers, shirts, hats, bow ties and a few other surprises along the way.

The various ways in which the “televisions” are used throughout the show is quite creative and allows for radically different set-ups to take over on stage. The cast makes excellent use of the performance area and really takes ownership of every available space.

The performers (Caitlin Brown, Ezekiel Ox, Fletcher Dyson, Maurial Spearim and Sophie Kinston) worked very well together and there was some strong rapport and high energy levels but as the title suggests, the show was a bit frenetic. Unfortunately it was so fast that I found myself constantly trying to catch up with what was happening.

Many topical issues are covered throughout the show including boat people, Gina Rinehart and the stolen generation but the surface is only ever skimmed with any of them. I was left feeling confused with a few of the recurring references and felt they were some sort of in-joke I was not privy to.

The songs by creator Ella Filar were composed well and the instruments used were chosen carefully and specifically. The voices of the performers highlighted each individual’s vocal strengths and it was great to see them excel here. However, the songs may have been a little short, for just as I understood what they were singing about, they were finished and we immediately moved on.

News Flashers describes itself as ‘political, vulgar, artistic, grotesque, sexy and sublime’, and successfully achieves its claims, but perhaps if the content had been narrowed down and the performance not been so exceptionally fast-paced, it might have been a little more enjoyable.

Venue: The Butterfly Club, 204 Bank Street, South Melbourne

Season: Until 11 November | 8:00pm, Wed, Sun 9:00pm

Tickets: $23 Full | $20 Concession

Bookings: http://thebutterflyclub.com/shows

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REVIEW: EP Launch with Spanky in CANDICE MCQUEEN – NASTY

His/her hit show is now on EP

By Jessica Cornish

On  Sunday November 4 in the iconic Spiegeltent nestled beside that giant ferris wheel, the outrageous artist Spanky morphed into Candice McQueen to launch her 5 track EP as produced by the Melbourne Cabaret Festival.

As always, the high-heeled Candice, draped in fluorescent pink and with blue eyelashes did not disappoint. But nor did WAAPA graduate support act, Gillian Cosgriff who kicked off the launch wonderfully, and quickly captivated the audience with her quirky songs about past relationships and bad experiences with shaving her legs and a lack of band aids in her life.

The feature show Nasty, fresh from its previous run a few months ago in the Melbourne Cabaret Festival, stars the bizarre Candice McQueen, ‘fluent in the language of fag,’ who tells epic tales of her life including a birth surrounded by a circle of gorillas, an hiatus in the Middle East where she was present for the crucifixion of Jesus, and a move to West Hollywood where she meet her lover, River Phoenix…

The  ‘Mr Sister’  has eternally strong stage presence, great comedic timing and an ability to draw you in to her bizarre world: however it was sometimes easy to get lost with some of her songs towards the end. But like the guy next to me said, ‘I have no idea what she’s talking about, but it’s funny’, so maybe it’s okay to be a little bemused sometimes.

Throughout the night Candice was accompanied by her extremely talented guitarist/pianist/back-up vocalist Robert Tripolino. Dressed in a pair of worn-out red converse shoes and sunnies, he was incredible, consistently nailing every harmony, including the tricky More Than Words classic, and demonstrating his skill on the guitar.

My only concern with the launch was that  I felt the production side was slightly lacking. Candice made great use of the difficult circular space in her initial stage appearance; however she was in darkness for most of the first number and throughout the performance there were other instances where I felt the show could have benefited from greater use of light.

However, that being said Nasty the EP launch was a great night. Once again Spanky delighted a crowded venue and the funds raised from this event will contribute to future international tours for the star and her sidekick.