Presented by The Factory
Reviewed Sunday 11th November 2012
This cabaret show is written and performed by Megan Doherty, who has been involved in musical theatre for over a decade and has more recently been working on a career in this genre. This was her first full length cabaret show and she was fortunate to have pianist, Daniel Brunner, as her accompanist. He was with her all the way, following every change in mood and tempo and underpinning her vocals superbly.
Megan Doherty has dreams, or perhaps it is wishful thinking, or maybe just an overactive imagination. In a packed and fast paced hour of cabaret she shares her dreams in song, opening with Friedrich Hollaender’s Want to Buy Some Illusions (slightly used, second hand).Connecting to the source of cabaret, the German Kabaret of the Weimar Republic, makes a for a good solid start to any cabaret performance, and this song sets the tone of the show.
The next song, Only When I Sleep, by the Corrs, continued the theme and also provided backing for dialogue emphasising the direction of the production, leading to an introduction that engaged the audience and got the laughs flowing. Her next number expressed a wish for a ‘Disney animation’ type of perfect love, with its happy ending. She then wonders, in English and in German, whether in fact she is not better off on her own.
Then there is the celebrity crush, using Noel Coward’s I’m Mad About the Boy, interestingly juxtaposed against Coin Operated Boy, by the Dresden Dolls, whose works seem to be popping up quite often in cabaret performances, in particular their dark number, Missed Me. A beautiful rendition of Scott Alan’s Kiss the Air followed.
Her childhood dreams also extend to anticipating being discovered by a producer for a career as an international star in musical theatre, using Delta Goodrem’s Innocent Eyes as the background to her fantasies. Tim Minchin’s When I Grow Up, from his musical based on Roald Dahl’s Matilda, continued the child’s dreams of the future, but it is strangely joined in a medley with Radiohead’s Creep. There are the adult dreams, too, and Kate Miller Heidke’s Shoebox gets an airing. A note of acceptance of reality comes in at last, with Tim Minchin’s Not Perfect, and she closed the performance with Kate Miller Heidke’s Ride This Feeling.
Doherty has selected a very eclectic mixture of music for this production that certainly pleased the audience at this final, sold out performance. Aside from a couple of tentative entries Doherty gave a very impressive first show, with a strong narrative linking well selected songs and an excellent connection to the audience. No doubt we will see more full length performances from Doherty now that she has successfully completed her first one, so keep an eye out for her, perhaps in the Fringe in February/March, or the Cabaret Fringe in June.
Reviewed by Barry Lenny, Arts Editor, Glam Adelaide.
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Venue: La Boheme, Grote Street, Adelaide
Season: ended
Duration: 1hr 10mins
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