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Soap – The Show
Six roll-top bathtubs, set at various levels on stage in The Vagabond at the Garden of Unearthly Delights, are the slippery playground for eight acrobats in Soap – The Show, from directing duo Markus Pabst and Maximilian Rambaek.
Featuring a variety of stunts including trapeze, acrobatics, dance, juggling and clowning, some drier than others, the genius of the show lies in the clever and often cheeky ways bathroom accessories are incorporated into solo and ensemble acts.
From handstands on soap-bar stacks to feet juggling with a foam brick and towel, Soap’s cast seems to defy laws of gravity and human biology with feats of balance, flexibility and strength. If you’ve ever slipped up in the bathtub at home, seeing the stunts where the bathtubs are partly filled with water make you feel all the more impressed by the skill involved.
Though awe inspiring and sometimes even moving and beautiful, the series of stunts did feel somewhat disconnected. The dynamic opening ensemble act of acrobats’ legs moving in unison above the bathtubs to the sounds of Gnarls Barkley’s Crazy left me wishing that the talented artists were brought together for more group performances, rather than a series of solo vignettes with no particular narrative link.
Female clown Marie-Andrée Lemaire provides a lot of heart and a common thread with her antics throughout the show, with an infectious energy and enthusiasm. She added a soundscape of laughter to an eclectic show soundtrack that ranged from the heavy rock of Tool to a playful opera version of the tune ‘Splish Splash’.
The Vagabond is the perfect venue for Soap, a funky circular circus tent that immediately puts you in the mood for this highly imaginative fusion of cabaret, comedy and burlesque. Just be sure to snag a seat towards the back if you’re not keen on getting wet!
Overall a highly entertaining Adelaide Fringe Festival show that will forever change the way you look at singing in the shower.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Adeliade Fringe Festival and Circle of Eleven presents
Soap – The Show
The Garden of Unearthly Delights – The Vagabond
21 February–18 March 2012
Bookings: www.gardenofunearthlydelights.com.au
Cherie Barnett is a keen arts enthusiast, who acts as publicist for Jazz SA and has previously acted as a GreenRoom Advocate for the Adelaide Festival Centre. She developed a passion for local theatre while working at Arts SA on the ShoGo audience development project. She currently works at Fig Tree Marketing and blogs about arts, marketing, and sometimes arts marketing at www.cheriebarnett.wordpress.com
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