Review by David Allen
Surviving A Modern World The Butterfly Club 12 March 2009
Recently graduated from the VCA, John Frankland and Stephanie Evison-Williams are finding the real world, well, a little bit tough. And so, like all recent performing arts students should, they did the only sensible thing – they wrote a cabaret about it.
Surviving a Modern World is really two short cabarets joined together, each performer operating mainly independently and performing a short show in their own right. Drawn together by the common theme of 'where do I go from here?', the two pieces allow each performer to show off and spill a little bit of their personality onto the stage.
Cursed by a vague resemblance to two famous musicians, John Frankland has developed a quirky and insidious comedic style that leaves audiences in stitches. Coupled with an impressively powerful 'musical theatre'-style voice, John's piece is clever, witty and great to watch.
An innovative approach to modern theatre and impressive use of 'props' make his performance laugh-out-loud funny and just a little groan-worthy.
In contrast to her more 'together' stagemate, Stephanie Evison-Williams has a disjointed, slightly crazy style that makes her quirkily appealing to any person who has ever spilt food all down themselves on a date or declared their undying love for a celebrity.
Rejoicing in her absurdity, Stephanie's wacky approach leads to some downright hilarious antics, including a brilliantly crafted dance with a heart-shaped pillow and a photograph.
Closed nicely at the end with Monty Python's famous Universe Song, Surviving a Modern World is a fresh take on life outside of institutionalised education.
Raw, a little unpolished, but always honest, this is great fun from new strong young voices in cabaret.
Showing posts with label VCA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label VCA. Show all posts
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