Johanna Allen’s “smorgasbord of musical snacks” promises a new way to experience pop classics
Presented by: Adelaide Cabaret Festival
Reviewed: 19 June, 2024
Renowned performer Johanna Allen combines her effervescent comedy and powerful soprano in her new show, Pop Culture Vulture. On Wednesday evening, she shares the stage with musical director Mark Simeon Ferguson, who accompanies her on the Steinway & Sons piano.
Allen welcomes the audience and explains the premise of her show. “I would like you to think of me as your own personal cabaret bin chicken, gnawing at musical morsels,” she says with a big smile. Largely drawn from pop-music, many of Allen’s songs are significantly transposed (thanks to Ferguson).
She begins with a rousing and sultry rendition of Taylor Swift’s Blank Space, performed as a cabaret show-stopper. When she sings Confide in Me, Allen imitates Kylie Minogue’s distinctive and powerful voice artfully. Next she takes a diversion with I Wanna Be Evil by Eartha Kitt and Poor Unfortunate Souls from Disney’s The Little Mermaid. At this point the audience abandons any attempts to predict Allen’s diverse line-up.
Allen continues to perform About the Boy by Dinah Washington, Are You Gonna Be My Girl by Jet, Where is it Written by Barbara Streisand, and Always Be My Baby by David Cook, among others.
Some of these songs are not like the rest. Allen’s operatic reimagining of Burn for You by John Farnham has the audience whispering, trying to place the aria, as she sings in Italian. Only towards the end does she include a chorus in English, sharing the joke with the crowd. She sings I Kissed a Girl and I Liked It by Katy Perry, translated into a Spanish ballad, reminiscent of Maria from West Side Story.
It would have been lovely to hear Allen supported by a full band, while her song list feels somewhat erratic. However, her vocal prowess together with Ferguson’s piano forgives a multitude of sins. Allen’s “smorgasbord of musical snacks” promises a new way to experience these classics, with a few surprising gems sprinkled in.
Reviewed by Nicola Woolford
Photo credit: Claudio Raschella
Venue: Dunstan Playhouse, Adelaide Festival Centre
Season: ended
More News
