Presented by the Adelaide Cabaret Festival
Reviewed Wed 23rd June 2010
http://www.adelaidecabaretfestival.com
Venue: Space Theatre, Adelaide Festival Centre
Season: 7 and 10PM Sat 26th June
Duration: 1hr 40min
Tickets: Adult $55/conc $50
Bookings: for all Cabaret Festival shows: BASS 131 241 or http://www.bass.net.au
Have you ever dreamed of running away to the circus? iOTA asks this question in song at the start of this performance, then shows what might happen if you do.
For a bit of cabaret up at the sharp end it is hard to go past this show, combining cabaret, physical theatre and circus in a unique performance. The ringmaster/clown is iOTA, strutting, singing, posing and playing ukulele in a range of bizarre costumes. Behind him is the terrific Smoke and Mirrors Band, led by musical director and bassist, Tina Harris, with Joe Accaria, drums, Chris Ball, keyboards and saxophone, and Martin Hailey, guitar, banjo and mandolin. The musical side of the show, with much of the music written by iOTA, has lots to offer and would have made a good show just on its own. With the addition of everything else that is involved, this is an amazing performance that just doesn’t let up for a second.
Created by Craig Ilott and iOTA, and directed by Ilott, the show was created to fill the Famous Spiegeltent during the Sydney Festival, replacing La Clique. It received rave reviews.
The expression, “it’s all done with smoke and mirrors”, has long been used to ‘explain’ the illusions performed by stage magicians. In reality, of course, it explains nothing, but merely serves as a self-reassurance that, although things may have seemed supernatural, there is bound to be a logical explanation, even if it isn’t immediately obvious. That describes this show well, with large rabbits appearing and disappearing and an endless array of strange characters taking their turn in the spotlight. Just as the mirror in Lewis Carroll’s fantasy, Alice’s Adventures Through the Looking Glass, showed characters to her who were a distorted reflection of reality, so too do we find those in this performance.
Given the title it would be incongruous had there not been a magician, and Timothy Woon fills that position perfectly, offering some fine work with doves, ducks and even cutting iOTA into three sections. A good circus needs an aerialist and Chelsea McGuffin is up there on the trapeze delivering some thrilling moves. A trio of false handlebar moustachioed strongmen, James Brown, Casey Douglas and Christian Schooneveldt-Reid, give a well-coordinated balancing act. They are joined in one segment by McGuffin, throwing her from one to another, swinging her around and, no doubt, scaring those close to the stage as she whizzes past them..
In times past no fairground was complete without freak show, and the bearded lady was always a fascination for visitors. Nowadays we are more politically correct (insert a fake cough and a knowing wink here), but Queenie van de Zandt revives that tradition, with a wispy beard adorning her chin. Political incorrectness is a part of cabaret and it runs through this show. Todd McKenney, a white face Vaudevillian song and dance man in a tight suit, sings The Dumber They Come The Better I Like ‘Em, not an iOTA song but one written and sung by Eddie Cantor back in the 1920s.
The there is iOTA, his enormous presence still felt even when he slips away briefly to change costumes. His every look and move seems to accentuate what is happening around him, as though the entire circus is nothing but an illusion that he has conjured up and that he can dispel with a click of his fingers. He gives the impression that he is controlling everything, even you, the audience.
There are times when there is a feeling of unease, others of elation and certainly of confrontation and challenge in this very rewarding performance.
Reviewed by Barry Lenny, Arts Editor Glam Adelaide.
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