Directed by Scott
Maidment
Presented by Strut
& Fret in association with the Canberra Theatre Centre
Fortuna Spiegeltent,
Canberra Theatre Centre forecourt to May 20
Reviewed by Len Power
27 April 2018
‘Blanc de Blanc’ at the Spiegeltent advertises itself as ‘a
blend of vintage glamour, high end spectacle and titillating acts’. We expect promoters to talk their shows up to
excite and attract an audience and it’s great when a show matches our
expectations.
Touring Spiegeltent shows of the past few years have generally
provided an evening of off-beat, sophisticated adult entertainment with original
and memorable international circus and cabaret acts. This new production has a few good acts but
its emphasis is more on the sleazy side of sex, promising a lot but then not
delivering.
 |
| Monsieur Romeo and cast |
Monsieur Romeo, the James Bondish-ish maitre d’ led the small
company through a predictable evening of double entendre, flashes of nudity,
gross-out moments and embarrassing audience-member participation with thunderously
loud pre-recorded music.
The few decent
circus acts with excellent lighting were a welcome relief from the padded out,
boring banter between acts. Costumes, makeup
and choreography were designed to exude a rampant animal sexuality which has
been seen so often before that it now has no impact.
The hula hoop act by Jess Mews was original and very well
performed. The highlight of the second
half of the show was a beautiful aerial ballet performed by Hampus Jansson and
Milena Straczynski. The show needed more
acts of this class.
This is the first time I have seen a show stopped in the
middle of the second act and audience members invited to take selfies with the
cast members for five minutes.
Opening night started 25 minutes late. You have to queue outside until they open the
doors so dress warmly and bring an umbrella if it looks like rain. Premium ticket holders go in first and get
the pick of the unreserved seats so you need to queue outside early if you want
to be close to the stage. The amount of
leg room in Economy on an aircraft is luxurious compared to what awaits you in
the Spiegeltent and with everyone crammed in so tight the sightlines to the stage
are poor.
This show will appeal to an audience who is still shockable
and prefers their entertainment to be predictable. If you’re hoping for sophistication, wit and a
reasonable number of high quality, unique circus/cabaret acts, this won’t meet
your expectations.
Photos by David James McCarthy
Len Power’s reviews
are also broadcast on his ‘On Stage’ performing arts radio program on Mondays and
Wednesdays from 3.30pm on Artsound FM 92.7.
