Scandalous Cabaret

Scandalous Cabaret

Scandalous Cabaret Rating

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Scandalous Cabaret is a fusion of Circus, Comedy and Cabaret all rolled into one travelling act in a tent. With a larger cast of twelve performers they advertise their show as a ‘hybrid’ adults only Circus, that delivers a sensually themed collection of acts.

The performance contained many old favourites from the Circus arts however with modern twists. We see the Unicycle, but also a miniature version, a three-wheeled version and a two-story off-centred version. Juggling is another classic, but performed with bounce, movement and up to 7 balls at once.

The absolute standout of the act was the talented Trapeze artist who also performed an aerial act with chains and neck spinning. She was mesmerising, with incredible strength and fluidity of movement. A great commendation is needed for the choreographer of the acts, as every performance had amazing flow of movement and contained many transitions.

The choreography knew when to contrast stillness and movement, and constantly used symmetry between the aerial artists. This was evident across the board, including a contortion routine that contained so much elasticity and smoothness of movement. Another standout was a fire performance containing skin transfers and fire eating. This act had great transitions and practical use of fire palms, bubbles and wands with excellent variation between these things.

 

The individual circus acts were to an incredibly high standard, where it seems that achieving a continuum would be within their grasp. The dance choreography had a very classic jazz style and made little interludes between acts, which was not unwelcome. There was mention of tracking ‘gossip’ surrounding relationships as a story-line for the performance, but this was quickly forgotten.

It would be nice to see this story-line develop more or play a more active role in the way things are staged. We did get a nice classic jazz number that was sung quite well, it would be nice to see more showcasing of vocal talents in their line-up in the future. The song choices and comedy included in the show feel a little crude and immature, not giving a high-class cabaret feel to the show. It would be good to see the staging and theming evolve to better showcase the fantastic talent contained within their cast.

Overall, Scandalous was not very much so, but a great showcase of fluid choreography and talent. It still proved an entertaining time with nice reinventions of older circus acts, and a large cast of professionals.

Scandalous Cabaret runs 15th November – 14th December.

To book tickets, please visit https://scandalous.com.au/

This review also appears on It’s On The House. Check out more reviews at Whats The Show to see what else is on in your town.

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The 39 Steps – Tugun Theatre

The 39 Steps - Tugun Theatre

The 39 Steps – Tugun Theatre Rating

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3

The 39 Steps is a comedic and farcical adventure that follows an ordinary man thrown into the throes of a spy action thriller.

The unique thing about The 39 Steps is that it is played by a cast of four plus stage crew who make occasional appearances. Two cast members take on approximately 250 roles between them, as mentioned in the play foreword. This makes it one hell of a ride for cast, crew, and audience alike, and that was before ingenious director Rianna Hartney-Smith added her hilarious touch to it.

Tugun Theatre sees an even more outlandish production of the 39 steps brought to life, giving the audience a guaranteed night of laughs. They use the guise of things going wrong [on purpose] to elevate the humour, with prompts often repeated so set pieces can be rushed out, broken props that play into the comedy and fantastically funny costuming. One amazing example of these additions was when two cast members kept rushing a lamp post on stage every time the other two characters looked out the window. This bit was repeated, leaving the actors increasingly flustered with hats falling off, arms flying everywhere, and the audience laughing.

Some other great choices for staging were using a plunger and a music stand to create a ‘car’. The ridiculousness of the props enhanced the jokes but still made them practical for the actors to use. All of these additions give the overall feeling of a play in a state of mania, in the best possible way.

 

Special commendations need to be made to Jack Lovett and Neil Watson, who take on the daunting task of having multiple characters. Jack Lovett gives the most energetic and exuberant performance, absolutely nailing the physicality of each of his roles. He should be applauded for his effort and commitment, most notably his cameo as an old man who fell many, many times from his seat and eventually off the stage. Jack absolutely sold this, and I believe he accidentally [or maybe on purpose] copped his own cane to the head multiple times in committing to this gag.

Neil Watson provides an equally entertaining performance, cross dressing multiple times but most notably giving a long and sultry kiss to finish out the play that really showed his dedication to the comedy of his many roles. Jon Turley does a fantastic job as Richard Hannay, playing a consistent and likable do-gooder who is really adept at escaping out windows.

Samantha McClurg also competently traverses the stage and gives us the right amount of hysteria in her roles as Anabella and Pamela. Finally, the dedicated stage crew went the extra mile, donning costume pieces and performing dance numbers during set changes to keep the pacing and laughs flowing.

This production was an absolute delight, and the whole cast and crew were clearly putting their passion into this performance. From using the entire venue and stage, to the elaborate lighting choreography you can feel the respect and hard work put into this play .Tugun Theatre and all involved should be congratulated on a riveting and hilarious production.

Tugun Theatres The 39 Steps runs from November 14th – November 30. To book tickets, please visit https://www.tuguntheatre.org/the-39-steps

Evening Shows:
November 14th – 30th
Thursday, Friday, and Saturday – 7:30PM

Matinee Shows:
November 16th & 23rd
Saturday – 2:00PM

This review also appears on It’s On The House. Check out more reviews at Whats The Show to see what else is on in your town.

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Delicious Aerialicious

Delicious by Aerialiscious Entertainment

Delicious by Aerialiscious Entertainment Rating

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3

Delicious is a scrumptious hybrid show mixing your favourite Burlesque and Circus acts, all themed around food and drink. The show as a whole imbues the audience with ecstatic energy, and satiates our hunger for entertainment.

It seamlessly blends comedy, acrobatics and eroticism in an extravaganza for any appetite. Our fantastic hosts, Chocolate Boxx and Clara Cupcakes bounce off each other brilliantly with quick witted remarks to introduce us to the world of ‘Delicious’ and its’ acts.

Initially we are met with Aline Chapet who performs a quirky routine with ‘Champagne’ bubbles. Her act brings the awe of a magician and the skill of a bartender to the stage, creating bubble art and playing with trapping and releasing smoke. Her act creates suspense and wonder as we wait for bubbles to pop, or not, as she skillfully crafts them. We were then rewarded with other unique acts such as Indie Berlin who performed a hilariously creative ‘Bread-lesque’ routine.

This combined the glitz and glam of burlesque with the comedic premise of feeding pigeons lots of bread; which was executed with elements of mime as well as expert choreography. Another creative act was Cello Bordello and her ‘hot-dog’ routine. This showcased a spunky burlesque number and a twist on sword swallowing except with a balloon. We were also delighted by some women’s Jelly Wrestling (Grace Law and Rachael Gibson); where you were still in the splash zone multiple rows back, causing eruptive laughter from the audience.

Our final unique act was Johnny Gash presenting a sweet ‘Candyman’ styled Drag King performance. Johnny Gash gave us the only vocal performance of the night, which was absolutely phenomenal and all but identical to Christina Augileira herself.

The circus acts included were incredible, with Andrea James Lui skillfully showcasing her amazing floorwork and Aerial Pole skills. With a quirky mad-hatter style, but incredible strength and fluidity she dazzled from the air. Elena Khaw graced us with an incredible show of contortion and flexibility, all whilst glazing herself in honey, keeping to the sweet theming.

Ambrose and Latonya brought some classic circus action with trapeze and Hula Hoop acts. Their Flow Art was smooth and polished, taking much coordination and strength. Finally, Tami Dawson presented hair suspension to close us out, which takes incredible, hair-raising skill.

With such a smorgasbord of talent, the audience was engaged and cheering from the start and this did not lull for the entire performance. The lighting and use of haze made all the performers look spectacular whether they be on the ground or in the air. The song choices were recognisable and energizing, bringing much enjoyment.

This show exudes confidence and really comes together beautifully, a perfect collection of talent, theming and taste. The cast and crew should be applauded for a delightful addition to the Melt Festival line-up.

This review also appears on It’s On The House. Check out more reviews at Whats The Show to see what else is on in your town.

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Failure: A Love Story by the Villanova Players

Failure: A Love Story by the Villanova Players

Failure: A Love Story by the Villanova Players Rating

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3

Failure: A Love Story is a Dramedy that also explores the use of music in the 1920s-themed Character-centric play. We follow ‘Mortimer Mortimer’ played by the delightful Lachlan Gregory Hugh, on his ill-fated courtship of no fewer than three women of the ‘Fail Family’ and the journey of his life until death. The story is delivered uniquely, where the characters take turns offering narrations in the third person, flitting in and out of the story.

The play competently and creatively incorporates the use of projections to help transport us to the very many various locations in the play. The Projections often provide us with unique family portraits, some hilariously photoshopped.

Other unique aspects of this production include using puppetry to bring to life a pet snake and the smooth vocals of Milton Scully, who plays a personified Gramophone. Although Milton excels vocally, they are raw on-stage with no backing track provided, which could have elevated the Jazz vibes of his performance. He still gives it his all, showing us masterful carrying of tune, pitch and tone.

Another odd aspect is the appearance of a dog played by Shane Fell, whose end-of-life euthanasia is played for laughs. This sounds shocking, but Shane’s bold choice and comedic performance make this a stand-out comedic moment.

The main stand-out performances belong to Lachlan Gregory Hugh and Sabrina Fu, who play Mortimer Mortimer and Nelly Fail, respectively. They bring vibrancy and energy to the stage, appearing confident and collected in their performances. Erin Hall and Sophie Morrison bring consistency and grounding to their performances as the other ‘fail’ sisters. Nathan Seng excels in his role, convincingly playing the shy and awkward adopted ‘fail’ brother.

All actors were well-spoken, projecting to the entirety of the theatre throughout. Nathan Seng has a great voice in the snippet of singing we get from his character, and the chorus singing moments sound great. Although once again backing tracks, and more upbeat dance choreography could have lifted the energy in these scenes to support the actors’ performances. We are delivered very clean and precise blocking throughout the performance, showing this cast could’ve competently handled more energetic or elaborate configurations.

This production was crafted with care and talent in the prop department, showcasing amazing handmade pieces. From a clockwork coffin to a Gramophone-themed megaphone, the props used were excellent. The lighting once again plays it safe, only being incorporated occasionally as a story-telling device, but all actors are well-lit. The pacing seemed to be the greatest difficulty in this production, with narrations often dragging and struggling to support the story in building to its climactic points of drama.

Unfortunately, this impedes some of the comedic timing at points and makes the third act, as we travel towards the ending, feel quite long. There is, at times, masking from the cast as they wait in limbo to jump in for their section of narration. However, the jokes that do land delight the audience and keep us invested in the journey of Mortimer Mortimer. Lachlan really does bring a great surge of vitality to the stage with his performance, and he should be commended.

Failure: A Love Story provides us with a cozy journey. It is funny while fated to tragedy and intimately explores a person’s journey through love. The cast should be commended on their successful performance and efforts.

With only two nights remaining, book your tickets to Failure: A Love Story @ https://www.villanovaplayers.com/coming-soon

This review also appears on It’s On The House. Check out more reviews at Whats The Show to see what else is on in your town.

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