Meditations
Words: Curio   
Saturday, 18 August 2007
First, to Tony Blair: The Musical, which I saw at the Gilded Balloon and
which was a delightful surprise.  Skilfully written, with terrific songs and
performances by a very talented (and gorgeous) bunch of actors who defied
the normal music theatre school of overacting. 
A song about New Labour soundbites, made up largely of New Labour soundbites, demonstrated that very
often the most effective satire consists of allowing your subject to damn
themselves.  And the way the show handled the events of 9/11 was
extraordinary - not in any way trivialising the events themselves, but then
segueing into a song satirising the media's response to them.

What's more, if the real Blair and Brown had been half as dishy as the
performers playing them in this show, I'd have been more eager to vote.

Then to my own show, which led to a meditation on audience participation.
Whenever a performer tries to draw the audience into the show I feel a
trepidatious heart-tingle.  But last night Vroni Holzmann got the entire
Bongo crowd doing Bavarian folk dancing, and then Mrs Barbara Nice had them
on their feet doing her Bollywood house-cleaning dance (I was the tall one
up the back) and then crowd-surfed.  Yes, crowd-surfed.  It was pure joy.

Today I've just seen the Gently Progressive Behemoth, which reminded me of
something my friend Justin Bond said about the importance of whimsy.  A
gently progressive show, full of delicious observations - the kind that you
actually have to have a reasonably engaged mind to enjoy.  And that's just
how I like it.  I was the one up the back, laughing a bit more loudly than
everyone else.

Tonight is my night off, so of course I'm going to see back-to-back cabaret.
Bob Downe, Amanda Palmer and Meow Meow.  I'll be the drunk one up the
back...