Val: So. Another fantastic offering from the Auckland Arts Festival
Jay: Yes indeed. Meow Meow being Melissa Madden Gray. Aussie-born but apparently particularly active in the UK. Which is presumably where she acquired her posh stage accent.
V: ...and also where she absorbed a bunch of her comedy influences, I think. I’m sure I saw Mrs Slocombe, Patsy AND Edina from Ab Fab, Joyce Grenfell and Catherine Tate at points. Plus a possible nod and wink to Julian Clary at his Joan Collins Fan Club best.
J: This show is bona fide cabaret, isn’t it.
V: Yes, a dazzling and bonkers mix of song, dance, aerial acrobatics, story-telling, smut and innuendo and …psycho-drama. I think it’s a real shame the advertisers chose to go with descriptions like ‘raunchy’ and ‘sexy’ as a way to sell the show, because that doesn’t do it justice at all.
J: That’s bang on. There is a classic fishnet and corset cabaret outfit involved. But when it makes its first appearance it’s immediately subverted by some daft posturing and silly walks. The comic effect is sharp and subvesive. It’s much more 1920s style burlesque than 1970s.
V: Another female performer successfully buggering about with the male gaze and screwing with it?
J: Yes, throughout. She goes from clumsy to vulnerable to overbearing to delirious. Stylistically, the audience never knows where things are going next. Despite the fact it's based on a well known fairy tale. Not the Disney version we should be clear.
V: And visually it’s almost a one-woman show. It’s just her and the audience for 90% of the time. And I did worry that we might have let her down on occasion. She asked for audience participation at times – the Mexican Wave was a complete disaster. I really don’t know how many people in the room knew what that was or how to execute one. She quite rightly took the piss. And she took her life in her hands allowing us to crowd surf her. We were hopeless! How she made it back on stage without losing several teeth and smashing her nose into the back of a chair, I’ll never know
J: I honestly don’t know if we were just rubbish, or this was expected and part of her ‘comedy fail’ routine. There was definitely a bit of the loveable klutz about some of her performance. But wonderful pathos mixed in with the slapstick.
V: But it wasn’t just all her, there an amazing supporting cast. I loved the way her backing band The Siren Effect Orchestra marched up to and around her at the start. We got a good look at them before they took their places at the back of the stage. We always knew they were the backbone of the performance.
J: Yup, the music was all original, and the songs are written by what looks like a seditious muso hall of fame, including Amanda Palmer, who Meow Meow has collaborated with in the Grand Theft Orchestra.
V: Oh, and don’t forget there’s a performing rock. And that’s not the strangest thing that happens by any means! But it is a fairy tale, so the other main role, of course, is the Prince. Played and sung lustily by the versatile Aussie, Chris Ryan.
J: Yes, I love how he metamophoses from annoying Ocker tradie to sensual love interest as our mermaid begins to look at him differently.
V: If I had to nit-pick and find fault with it, I say perhaps it was just one song too long. But otherwise I thought it was a splendid take on the Little Mermaid and several other fairytales – which seems to be her speciality. Our friend Martin was tempted to see the whole show again to pick up some of the bits he thought he missed the first time – not knowing how the story would pan out. I’d agree with that. Would you see her again?
J: Definitely. Ship her over as often as possible. Meow Meow is well worth the airfare.
Verdict: When she’s in Aotearoa again – don’t miss her!
Z I N G !
| Created and performed by Meow Meow Directed by Michael Kantor Set and Costume Design by Anna Cordingley Lighting and Design by Paul Jackson Musical Direction by Jethro Woodward Comedy Direction by Cal McCrystal Auckland Arts Festival - Last show 13th March |
