Category Archives: Cabaret

‘Paris in a Jazz Age: The Memoirs of Eloise Defleur’ (Venue 43, until AUG 16th)

Posted in *EdFestivals 2025, 5*, Cabaret, Musical Theatre, Rated: Outstanding, Theatre by

“As Eloise, Airlie Scott, sparkles like a coupe of champagne at one of Gatsby’s shindigs.”

Editorial Rating: 5 Stars (Outstanding)

There are moments in human history which excite the potential time-travelling tourist more than others. Shakespeare’s London and Edo-era Tokyo have to be pretty high on the list, but Paris in a Jazz Age might well top the itinerary. The Hot Jazz Vagabonds have hit upon a genius way to conjure the glitz and the glamour, the triumph and the tragedy of that sparkling moment of bold artistic achievement. They have created a spoken word memoir, a parade of memories recalled to us by a charming central character, Eloise DeFleur. Eloise is a British upper-crust vocalist who arrived on the scene to get down and flirty in the nightclubs and cafes of the French capital at its most intoxicating. On these pacy vignettes is hung a string of familiar jazz hits played as well as they have ever been played by anyone, anywhere, anywhen.

As Eloise, Airlie Scott, sparkles like a coupe of champagne at one of Gatsby’s shindigs. Best known for her Doris Day Show, Scott looks the part in a trés chic red sequin number that leaves plenty of room for fancy footwork. Eloise’s story is told with a passion so intense that it lifts us from our (really rather comfortable) Space Amphitheatre seats and onto rickety auld wooden numbers in a smokey backroom off the Rue Reine d’Écosse. Scott’s audience interactions are lively and elegant, her voice strong yet supple, owning each phrase and lyric like they were especially written for her. The band she’s leading are simply magnifique. Not a note not in place, not a beat missed, every swing a sensation. 

This show was originally twice the length, and I would crawl over broken glass or maybe even use a French public toilet (if I really had to), to see the full version. As it is, distilled into its most essential, most vivacious, and most memorable triple-shot espresso form, it is a triumphal blend of music, theatre, comedy, and romance – the must-see late-night musical marvel of the moment. Come for the jazz. Stay for the sass. Get your cream double-breasted overcoats on and go see this!

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‘Victor’s Victoria’ Venue 20, until 25th AUG (not 7th or 20th)

Posted in 5*, Cabaret, EdFestivals 2024, Rated: Outstanding, Theatre by

“You may know him as Doc Holliday or Samson or Demetrius… I knew him as Dad.”

Editorial Rating: 5 Stars (Outstanding)

Spoiled for choice as we are at the Fringe for drama and stand-up comedy, it’s always good to side-step every now and again into that much-loved genre Cabaret & Variety. One of the standout shows in that category this year is this very engaging and entertaining show in the Drawing Room: one of the more cosy medium-sized theatres at the Assembly Rooms on George Street.

In this slick one-woman show, Victoria Mature – the daughter of Hollywood golden age legend Victor Mature (1913-1999) – tells the story of her life with a famous father. Though his star may have faded a little in recent years, even Generation Z must surely be familiar with that craggily handsome, lantern-jawed face from all of those sword-and-sandal biblical epics that show up on TV every Christmas and Easter? He was equally at home as a hard-boiled noir detective or in a Western. As his daughter notes early in this show: “You may know him as Doc Holliday or Samson or Demetrius…I knew him as Dad.”

As Victoria takes us through her own life and her father’s glittering career, her lively monologue is interspersed with projected movie clips inspired by his career. There are also musical interludes from several shows with which both she and her father were involved. As an opera singer with an international career, Ms. Mature certainly knows how to put a song over. We were treated to her warm, dramatic soprano voice, accompanied by a live pianist, giving powerfully emotional renditions of excerpts from Broadway shows and classical opera, as well as movie soundtrack favourites. The range of material is fascinating, ranging from Dvorak to Kurt Weil, via the Gershwins. No prima donna (in the pejorative sense, at least), Victoria cheerfully invited the audience to sing along with the best-known numbers.

Victoria has inherited a great deal of her late father’s showbiz sparkle. Her raven black hair reflects his Italian ancestry, accentuated by the off-the-shoulder black cocktail dress she wears throughout the show. Indeed, there were moments during the songs when, pouting in concentration between lines, there were striking glimpses of her father shining through in her facial expression.

In telling his and her life stories, there are anecdotes aplenty from the golden age of Hollywood. As a precocious child star herself, she met and worked with what sounds like a Who’s Who of studio-era Tinseltown. But this is no mere name-dropping exercise; her reminiscences of this bygone era are told with panache and all of the theatricality one would expect from a woman who had an insider’s view of the movie business.

The show runs at the Fringe until 25th August, so get along to see this, its UK premiere, while it’s still in a relatively small venue where the encounter is close-up and personal. I suspect we’ll be seeing and hearing more of it in the future.

‘Kravitz, Cohen, Bernstein and Me’ (Venue 20, until AUG 27th)

Posted in 4*, Cabaret, Comedy, EdFestivals 2023 by

“Drawing heavily on her Jewish ancestry and culture, this is a witty, humour-laden cabaret that had an engaged audience singing along to Deb’s guitar and then cackling at her often highly risqué jokes. “

Editorial Rating: 4 Stars (Nae Bad)

In this one-woman comic storytelling show, the multi award-winning Kiwi/Canadian/Jewish comedienne Deb Filler takes us on a musical journey through her eventful life. Using the three Leonards of the title as a theme, we follow her from her showbiz beginnings as a child prodigy in New Zealand through many a chance encounter with her eponymous heroes.

Drawing heavily on her Jewish ancestry and culture, this is a witty, humour-laden cabaret that had an engaged audience singing along to Deb’s guitar and then cackling at her often highly risqué jokes. Her often self-deprecating humour reveals a musical upbringing in the midst of a close immigrant family in Auckland, New Zealand. Very early success in talent contests set her on the pathway that has brought her to the fringe as a consummate and experienced entertainer. Filler throws her net wide in reminiscing about her musical influences: Judy Garland in the 1950s gives way to the Beatles and the Stones in the 60s – a highlight of which is the unforgettable experience of hearing her sing Hard Day’s Night and Satisfaction in Yiddish. Long before she met the three Lennies, her first musical celebrity encounter was with the folk trio Peter, Paul, and Mary, who toured New Zealand in the early 60s. No spoilers here, but the tale of her experience of meeting them as a starry-eyed adolescent is a funny tale well told. We stay in the southern hemisphere for the remarkable story of a truly magical encounter with the legendary conductor, composer, and pianist, Leonard Bernstein. Later on in life, it is an adult Deb in America who meets Cohen and then Kravitz, both times with rather more chaotic results than happened with the debonair Mr Bernstein.

A skilled instrumentalist and singer, Filler plays the musical interludes on her guitar. From time to time throughout the show, her story is illustrated by screen projection: sometimes with colour photos of celebrities she has met; other, more poignant photos in grainy monochrome are family snaps from earlier times, including one of her grandmother, who got the family out of Germany in 1938 – the nick of time before the nazis slammed the door shut. For those who like a singalong, the lyrics to a well-known Cohen song were projected for the audience to join in as Deb Played it.
This 1hr 10min show gives you a little more for your money than the usual hour here at the Fringe and runs until 27th August. So, whether you like jokes or singing, get your coats on and go see it. Go to hear a fascinating life story set to music. Stay for Hard day’s Night sung in Yiddish. Leave with the thought that life can be full of strange and coincidental encounters.

 

‘Thomas Benjamin Wild Esq – Live From Bedfringe’ (Bedfringe, 30 July)

Posted in 5*, Bedfringe 2021, Cabaret by

“A perfect performance by an artist who is at the beginning of the beginning of a brilliant journey.”

Editorial Rating: 5 Stars (Outstanding)

The worst thing you can do in a review is talk about the rest of the audience. What matters, I always say to new members of the writing team, is your reaction. How did the show impact you? Avoid phrases like, “the audience seemed disengaged” or “the audience seemed to like it” they’re just not useful. Last night was the exception that proves this rule. We, the audience, were very excited about this performance.

Thomas Benjamin Wilde esquire in the county of Bedfordshire has been one of those artists who’ve helped make the past 18 months almost tolerable. His YouTube covers encompass every kind of gem from Meat Loaf’s Bat Out of Hell to Jack Buchannon’s Everything Stops for Tea. His original compositions are smart, funny, occasionally smutty, and catchier than COVID at a Trump White House event. Last night had the celebratory feeling of a comeback tour, yet it was only the first gig of a relatively recent newcomer’s much-delayed first ever tour.

The audience know that TBW is good. So good that had Bertie Wooster played banjolele even at two to the power of two hundred and seventy-six thousand, seven hundred and nine to one against as well as Thomas Benjamin Wilde esquire in the county of Bedfordshire then Jeeves might not have left him and Wodehouse would have lost a plot. Everyone in the room is a fan.

Last night was streamed live over YouTube (see above) and this is where I got that thrill that only comes from seeing someone you already greatly admire succeeding at something really chuffing hard. TBW was equally present for both the live audience and the folks at home. It was a beautifully balanced act, pulled off with the gracious humility of a true professional who has worked at their craft morning, noon, and night until it’s sharper than a cavalry saber slicing open a bottle of 2002 vintage bubbles.

It’s a funny thing that Burgess never much liked A Clockwork Orange. Graves wasn’t overly fond of I, Claudius. Graham fell in and out of love with The Wind in the Willows and we all know what Conan Doyle tried to do to Sherlock Holmes. So it follows that Thomas Benjamin Wilde esquire in the county of Bedfordshire has a complicated relationship with “That Song”, the one that made him a sensation.

BedFringe’s James Pharaoh claims credit for inspiring the little ears (no swearing) version and it’s a great twist on a much loved (by us at any rate) newly minted classic. This is the first show I’ve seen with Daughter 1.0 since EdFringe ‘19. She’s 6 now and a big TBW fan (although admittedly she prefers Tom Carradine). This was a brilliant family-friendly show to reawaken her excitement about live performance.

The unexpected move from the garden to the bar – the afternoon’s rain had tried very hard to stop play – amplified both the music and the energy of the crowd. It’s a long thin space with exposed rafters which were played to front and back. There was some Rodney Bewes style ad hocs when things went awry, but this forced improv only made things all the jollier. The flashing TV screen in the background wasn’t quite covered by the set, but other than that this was a perfect performance by an artist who is at the beginning of the beginning of a brilliant journey.

Reviewer: Dan Lentell

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Stiff & Kitsch: By All Accounts Two Normal Girls (C Royale: 14-28th Aug: 16.40: 60mins)

Posted in 5*, C Venues, Cabaret, Comedy, EdFestivals, EdFestivals 2017, Musical Theatre, Plus 3 2017 - Reviews by

“Two extremely talented comedians who deserve to be playing to full houses”

Editorial Rating: 5 Stars

There’s something to be said for taking a label someone gives you and owning it, turning it into a badge of honour. It takes guts and good humour. And that’s exactly what Rhiannon Neads and Sally O’Leary display by the bucketload in their latest outing as Stiff & Kitsch in By All Accounts Two Normal Girls – a show so named after a quote from my review of them last year.

The premise of the show is a discussion and self-help guide on how to achieve the level of “normality” the two girls have (according to, erm, me) by taking a comedic look at different aspects of their lives from jobs, to health, wealth and everything in between. Opening quip “things are about to get normal” sets the tone for a witty, honest and accessible hour of fun.

Each section is punctuated with a trademark musical number, which work really well to summarise and highlight their main comments, with choruses including repeated lines as blunt as “Keep your bullshit to yourself” (in reference to seemingly narcissistic social media use by their peers), and “I haven’t a fucking clue”, which we’ve all felt about one thing or another. What pleases most about this duo is their slick back and forth – in both the songs and general banter – the whole performance maintains a beautifully unrehearsed aura, like they’ve put it together especially for you in that moment.

The professionalism and confidence from Stiff and Kitsch have pleasingly stepped up a notch from last year – there is a bit more a swagger and presence within their performance, not un-aided by the life-size cardboard cut-outs of themselves that adorn the back of the stage. Yet with this growth as performers what they haven’t lost is their likeability: the sense that they are still one (or two) of us with the same flaws and insecurities as everyone else. What they do really well is to make each one into something to laugh about, and there are certainly plenty of laughs to be had in this show.

While my main criticism of their show last year is still largely accurate – the variety and creativity within the musical numbers is somewhat lacking – it is the only blemish on an otherwise polished and very funny show. I didn’t stop smiling once throughout the whole hour.

It’s not always easy to admit that you were wrong, but this time I’m glad to: Stiff & Kitsch aren’t two normal girls: they’re two extremely talented comedians who deserve to be playing to full houses. And if they call their next show that, I am retiring.

Star (blue)Star (blue)Star (blue)Star (blue)Star (blue)

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Reviewer: Steve Griffin (Seen 19 August)

THIS REVIEW HAS NOT BEEN SUBEDITED

+3 Review: Price (still) Includes Biscuits. (the Space @Surgeons Hall. Until Aug. 27 18:15)

Posted in 4*, Cabaret, Comedy, Other, Rated: Outstanding, Stand-Up, Theatre by

“Paul’s deadpan delivery casts a spell over her audience.”

Editorial Rating: Stars: 4 Outstanding

When Naomi Paul comes out to the soundtrack of Sweet Dreams Are Made of This and plants herself stock still in the centre of the brightly-lit stage, one immediately gets the impression that this show is going to be different. So it proves to be. 

Paul reassures the audience that the price does indeed include biscuits but they come later. It is then straight in with her observations on living in modern Britain. Paul uses her home city of Birmingham to illustrate the ridiculousness of current government policy and the effects of prolonged spending cuts. Slowly her body starts to move and her stance becomes more natural as Paul starts her first piece of audience interaction. On a small side table, she displays her latest certificate: Radicalisation General Awareness Training. Do you need to take the test? Are you aware of the signs? Perhaps you are a radical already and need to be reported?

Moving on from modern multicultural Britain, Paul then reflects upon her own Jewish and Eastern European roots. Through the media of spoken word, song and a coat, Paul tells how her America-bound ancestors to ended up in the Welsh valleys. The story moves from the ancestral selling of haberdashery to the fitting of industrially-constructed bras. The best laid plans of her mother, attempting to preserve the virtue of the teenage Paul, didn’t exactly go as expected.

Through further songs and stories of poverty and the workhouse, we return to the present with a treatise upon the dangers of Thinking. Especially dangerous is being careless with the incriminating evidence of Thinking. Rubbish bags and computers should be treated with caution, as should the practice of speaking with strangers. With that due warning, it’s time for the audience Biscuit Break.

From biscuits and budding (if potentially subversive) audience relationships, Paul continues with the subject of modern social contact. For some, the most meaningful conversations are with the call-centre operator or a visiting Jehovah Witness. This sweeps into the area of mixed marriages, diversity and religion. Where is the best place to be Jewish at Christmas?

Price (still) Includes Biscuits goes beyond the normal boundaries of observation comedy and satire. Over the course of the hour, Paul’s deadpan delivery casts a spell over her audience, leading to an outcome which is different from any other show on the Fringe. Maybe she hasn’t got the best singing voice  but the show is funny, it works and, what’s more, it gets one thinking.

Thinking. Dangerous business that nowadays.

outstanding

StarStarStarStar

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Reviewer: Martin Veart (Seen 25 Aug)

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THIS REVIEW HAS NOT BEEN SUBEDITED

+3 Review: Triple Entendre: Love, Life and Other Stuff (C Nova: until 29 Aug: 21.50: 50 mins)

Posted in 4*, C Venues, Cabaret, EdFestivals 2016 by

“Clever, stylish and hilariously performed”

Editorial Rating: 4 Stars: Nae Bad

Three microphones, three young women, a lot of songs and a lot of sass. Triple Entendre don’t mess about. Taking to the stage in coordinating black outfits and bursting into an a capella fifties style song, everything about their presence at the beginning of this performance shows they mean business.

Given the subject matter of the first few numbers (and interludes) I was worried that it would be a purely “girl power” all-we-can-talk-about-is-men-and-sex kind of show. Thankfully the group soon move on to show they do have more depth and gumption about them than the Spice Girls, with catchy songs including Resting Bitch Face and my personal favourite Can’t Scat, about the jazz singer who couldn’t scat – clever, stylish and hilariously performed.

While the show is mostly singing (there’s precious little chat in between numbers), a few poems are interspersed which do show great creativity and add variety to the piece. My favourite of these was Anger – a short but fast-paced tirade that we all wish we had the guts to spit at someone who’s screwed us over at some point. I must also mention the touching song Mind the Gap, which, as well as cramming a lot of London Underground wordplay (to my great amusement) into a few short verses, also showed a glimmer of fragility in comparison with the quite up tempo and feisty feel of what had gone before.

Throughout the piece the singing and musicality of the performers is excellent – note-perfect with great range and adaptability to suit different styles. And while it’s clear that the trio have a close bond and easy way of working with each other, we don’t get to learn much about their individual personalities – for a cabaret show it seems quite guarded. There’s not a lot of openness or up close and personal moments between numbers so it all seems to go quite quickly and I was left feeling slightly cheated by not having gotten to know the girls better by the end.

Overall there’s some great original content in there and the singing is spot on, but I feel the group need to work a bit harder to define their identity and open up a bit more.

nae bad_blue

Star (blue)Star (blue)Star (blue)Star (blue)

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Reviewer: Steve Griffin (Seen 15 August)

THIS REVIEW HAS NOT BEEN SUBEDITED

+3 Review: Tony Roberts – Card Magic (Assembly Roxy, Aug 5-28 : 21.30 : 1hr)

Posted in 4*, Assembly Roxy, Cabaret, EdFestivals 2016, Rated: Outstanding by

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“Absurdly clever card trickery”

Editorial Rating: 4 Stars Outstanding

I’ve never been very good at card tricks. As someone for whom maths lessons loomed like Banquo at the feast, knowing the number work at play in even the simplest sleight veered me sharply away. So when presented with someone who can do it with skill, I’m naturally impressed; and when presented with Tony Roberts, I was delighted.

Though the audience I saw him in was small, I feel this made no difference: Roberts is an expert at playing a crowd as if it was a one on one conversation, turning what could have been a small show in the Roxy downstairs into a warm, intimate and deeply interesting conclave. Hosted by the titular lauded businessman-cum-acclaimed street performer, ‘Card Magic’ (as Roberts so quickly and happily points out) is what it says on the tin – though perhaps without fully advertising the sheer quality of the product inside. And what that exactly is, much like the man himself, is hard to describe. Part comedy show, part biography and with a heaped helping of absurdly clever card trickery, this was a performance which never failed to intrigue and entertain.

This show’s greatest asset (quite fittingly) is Roberts himself. Deeply charismatic from the moment he opens his mouth, he fails to fall into the trap of braggadociousness which plagues so many contemporary street magicians. It’s like hanging out with an Australian uncle down the pub, if that very same uncle had spent a few years trapped in a Johnny Ace Palmer show. It’s clear from the get-go exactly how Roberts can draw crowds on a busy street – not only his wit, but his genuineness and warmth.

But, of course, being an ace with his suits doesn’t hurt either – and Roberts is clearly one of the best. Even with repeat viewings, his tricks would boggle the mind. Shaking his hand at the end of the show (as he humbly asks of every audience member), it’s almost surreal to recall the sheer dexterousness with which his fingers move. Although some of the tricks flowed a little too subtly on from his storytelling (though with shuffling skills like his, it’s difficult to tell when the real show’s starting), their denouement is always satisfying, whether you know you’re there at first or not.

This is the kind of show that makes children wish to grow up to be magicians, and adults wish they’d had the chance. But, as Roberts own story proves, it’s never too late to start seeing the magic – and I can think of no better show to pull back the curtain.

outstanding

StarStarStarStar

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Reviewer: Jacob Close (Seen 7 August)

Visit the Assembly Roxy archive.

THIS REVIEW HAS NOT BEEN SUBEDITED

+3 Review: Hot Brown Honey (Assembly Roxy, 5 Aug – 28 Aug : 20:20 : 1hr)

Posted in 5*, Assembly Roxy, Cabaret, EdFestivals 2016, Rated: Outstanding, Theatre by

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“Gleefully challenges stereotypes of sex and race with a full grin, bared chest and raised middle finger.”

Editorial Rating: 5 Stars Outstanding

I sat for some time before writing this review trying to think of an introduction which best captured what I thought of Hot Brown Honey. But the truth is, there’s not much else which can compare to the bombastic gut punch of a burlesque show Assembly Roxy has somehow managed to contain inside their theatre. From the second that the glass-panelled hive lights roar to life, this show is a nonstop ride that has the audience welded to their seats.

Hosted by unapologetically badass MC Kim “Busty Beatz” Bowers, Hot Brown Honey is a raucously funny and entertaining trip through acrobatics, beatboxing, song, dance and everything in between. But don’t be fooled – despite considerable comedy thrills, it never strays from what makes it so compelling: a show which not only celebrates the power and complex femininity of women of colour, but gleefully challenges stereotypes of sex and race with a full grin, bared chest and raised middle finger.

To talk too much about the acts would lessen their impact, but it cannot be said enough that each segment of performance was distinct, feverishly well executed and consistently jaw dropping. Every single honey from this hive is impressive enough to warrant their own review, let alone packing every single one into a single critique. Of course, for those who aren’t fans of audience participation, proceed with tentative caution: a show like this one demands to spill out into the aisles, to surprising and hilarious results.

The honeycomb that links up this show, however, is both more subtle and infinitely more loud than the performers themselves. There are West End shows that could learn things from the tech team behind the burlesque extravaganza. The sync between every technical element and the behaviour of the set is nothing short of breathtaking, for those who can bear to concentrate on anything but the inspired spectacle going on centre stage.

But what makes Hot Brown Honey such an outstanding show goes beyond its strength in immediacy. When the applause stops and the doors are open, that doesn’t mean the show is over: the messages, ethos and enthusiasm for equality, sexuality and sensuality stick around far after the day is done. As a piece of burlesque, Hot Brown Honey is outstanding simply by merit of its performance. But as a complete show, its greatest triumph is that it fully achieves the vision set out by creators Bowers, Lisa Fa’alafi and Candy B: not simply social activism masquerading as entertainment, but a genuinely thought provoking thrill which, at least personally, will open the eyes of many to any issue they never even know existed.

If you like your shows sexy, superbly skillful and socially conscious, you cannot miss Hot Brown Honey this Fringe. It’s a rare show indeed.

 

outstanding

StarStarStarStarStar

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Reviewer: Jacob Close (Seen 6 August)

Visit the Assembly Roxy archive.

THIS REVIEW HAS NOT BEEN SUBEDITED

+3 Review: A Lady’s Guide to the Art of Being a Wingman (Gilded Balloon: 4-28 Aug: 23.30: 1hr)

Posted in 3*, Cabaret, Comedy, EdFestivals 2016, Gilded Balloon by

“Performed with great energy… the trio really can sing”

Editorial Rating: 3 Stars

This show sees three young Australian women in suits and huge pink beehive wigs attempt to adopt the traditionally male “wing man” mentality to get them laid on a night out. To assist them in their farcical mission they follow the steps of a recorded self-help manual, and a lot of pop songs.

Of course it’s all a bit ridiculous, but it’s a (fairly) light-hearted comedy show that doesn’t take itself too seriously. However, it took me 10 minutes or so to work out what was going on to start with, as the show opens quite frantically with a lot of attitude and numerous snippets of well-known pop songs, all sung by the girls live.

Once the piece settles down it becomes much more enjoyable, and I was able to appreciate more of the artistic merit behind it. Three interesting characters emerge, each representing women with different levels of sexual confidence and experience, and we follow their plight through every step of their night.

At every juncture the girls burst into song, each of these being a well-known pop-song with lyrics cleverly and subtly adapted to suit the message. They are performed with great energy, and the trio really can sing, making the whole experience infinitely more enjoyable than having to sit through seemingly endless karaoke car crashes. The accompanying choreography is slick and performed with pizzazz, so on the whole, the actual performance element ticks almost all the boxes.

The surprising a capella rendition of Imogen Heap’s Hide & Seek towards the end is the best showcase of just how talented the girls are as vocalists, even if this number seems a little out of place among the rampant and upbeat pop numbers throughout the rest of it.

I was a bit disappointed in the over-reliance on the recorded advice, and would have preferred a more creative technique to keep the action on track and flowing from one section to the next. A little more focus on control and less mayhem at the beginning of the piece would also make it seem more professional and easier to engage with from the off.

This show won’t be to everyone’s taste – it’s loud, unapologetic and very fast-paced. But it is funny, full of life and contains a surprising amount of depth, particularly towards the end.

Star (blue)Star (blue)Star (blue)

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Reviewer: Steve Griffin (Seen 4 August)

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