Happily grotesque and gruesome
By Jessica Cornish
A Rolex, a pearl necklace and a bottle of what might be blood – triggering early shock and surprise for the audience set the tone for this promising production. Salty is both a series of three horror-comedy sketches based on Malay- Singaporian mythology, and a good night out in the CBD.
Salty was created by award winning Melbourne Fringe cabaret artist Shannan Lim, supported by performers Tye Norman and Jayde Harding, and together the trio spin tales of debauchery and terror. Lim in particularly has an amazing ability to flip from moments of the mundane into a fiery physical performance oozing with rage and distress, which was an impressive feat to witness.
The performance cleverly used a series of visual projections to support the changing narrative and pre-recorded voice-overs to build on the characters. The scene transitions were well-executed whereby each change-over itself was turned in to a featured event that was enjoyable to watch. There was even an unexpected dance routine thrown into the mix, which was one of my favourite moments of the evening.
As the show progressed, the three seemingly separate sketches all cleverly weaved into one another, and piece by piece the story slowly falls into place. The ensuing plot-line was absurd and interesting, and there were moments of raw humour that caught audience members satisfyingly off-guard.
However, on the night I attended, there were also moments that seemed to fall quite flat, and there were awkward pauses that left an air of discomfort in the room. Moreover, crude language and strong sexual themes are abundant, so if you’re not into graphic descriptions of dominant men describing their sexual conquests and sexual innuendo, maybe give this one a miss. That said, if you are into the absurd, love a good horror tale, and want to see something pretty quirky, this might be the show for you.
Salty is being performed at The Butterfly Club, Carson Place, CBD every night until Sunday 30th of July at 8:30pm.
Full Price: $32
Concession: $28
Group booking:$25
Phone: 03 9663 8107
Theatre Press 