Lip syncing, cabaret fun.
Presented by Karen from Finance
Reviewed 2 March 2020
After some delays due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, Karen from Finance has left the office and has arrived in Adelaide.
The Melbourne drag star is in her debut solo show Out of Office, where she is finally not working and finds what her life is outside of her employment.
The story begins by introducing Karen as the hardest worker in her company, living for her 80 hour work week, her dedication to work is second to none, and she has the delightfully excessive manner of turning the most mundane and average aspects of office life into unique passionate moments.
Her world is flipped on its head when she’s forced onto four months of accumulated leave. Lost and unsure, she ends up on a bender that leaves her four months later, far from home and in a desperate need to get back to work. A few plot twists, and Drag Race references later, Karen ends her trip home with a new sense of self.
Karen from Finance is Out of Office is a fun drag experience that intertwines high quality multimedia productions that advance the storyline and set up some of the funniest moments. It is a lip-syncing drag, cabaret show that’s pieced together with the general presence of a narrative that is crafted to highlight the camp wit and performance styling of Karen.
Some of the lip sync songs are even mixed with YouTube audio to interject the seriousness of some of the ballads and matches the humorous nature of Karen’s lip sync style while maintaining the sharp, drag tongue in the comedy.
There is some great costuming to match the show’s style, in particular the detailing on the wreckage outfit which hints at so many aspects of a bender that there’s more visual jokes to be found with each turn or point from Karen.
Karen from Finance completes her run at the Adelaide Fringe March 21st, which includes some additional dates to compensate for the lost shows due to the lockdowns.
Reviewed by Alex Dunkin
Twitter: @AlexDunkin
Venue: The Virago, Gluttony, Rymill Park, Adelaide
Season: 19 February – 21 March 2021 (schedule changed from initial program to extend season in light of Covid restrictions)
Duration: 60 mins
Tickets: $30 – $35
Bookings: https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/karen-from-finance-is-out-of-office-af2021
Rating out of 5: 4
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