We see a lot of cabaret/circus/comedy fusions nowadays; director and creator Craig Ilott’s Velvet adds disco to the mix, delivering a night of glitzy, blingy fun. Velvet is a thoroughly enjoyable celebration of disco fabulousness that aims at nothing more than entertainment, and it does what it sets out to do perfectly.
Australia’s own diva Marcia Hines is divine in this well-honed production; she’s really in star form and possibly the best thing about the show.
Musically Velvet is a complete treat and you get to sing along with classic disco numbers like Boogie Wonderland, Shake Your Groove Thing, Young Hearts Run Free, It’s Rainin’ Men, If You Could Read My Mind and No More Tears, all enjoying vigorous old-meets-new arrangements with so much energy.
The story, such as it is, threads loosely around lead performer Brendan Maclean who by the end of the show trades in his office-worker look to get in touch with his inner Priscilla, Queen of the Desert glam rock god; he’s certainly up to the task. A highlight is his simple and refreshing ukulele-accompanied version of Stayin’ Alive – poignant, smooth, raw and cool. Just beautiful.
There’s much glamorous dancing and singing by Rechelle Mansour and Chaska Halliday, also both impressively talented musical theatre performers. Percussionist/producer/composer and musical director of this show, Joe Accaria does a turn as a DJ and comes down to the stage to deliver some Middle Eastern style boogie beats. Craig Reid, ‘the incredible hula boy’ is a chubby Scot who slays the hoops most spectacularly. How he maintains his physique is a mystery as he crackles with physical energy on stage. Gorgeous stuff. Then there’s the circus element – aerial acts by Emma Goh and Stephen Williams (him providing some nice shirtless tease), including a bondage inspired airy turn to I Feel Love, plus a balancing act or two by cute Berliner Mirko Köckenberger.
There’s not much more to be said: Velvet is a slick, glitzy, fun and wonderfully-lit show, with a sense of intimacy all its own. The audience were on their feet at the end but the recorded music was too thin compared to what we had just been getting down to, so dancing afterwards felt anti-climactic. If you enjoyed La Clique and La Soiree, et al, you’ll adore this.
3 ¾ stars out of 5
Velvet
Created and Directed by Craig Ilott
Musical direction by Joe Accaria
Performed by Marcia Hines, Brendan Maclean, Joe Accaria, Mirko Köckenberger, Rechelle Mansour, Chaska Halliday, Craig Reid, Emma Goh and Stephen Williams
Malthouse Theatre, Southbank
23 March – 17 April 2016
Melbourne International Comedy Festival
www.comedyfestival.com.au
23 March – 17 April 2016
