5 stars
Many fringe shows claim to be weird, and wonderful, and pushing the limits. Many shows are dirty liars. Not so with Danger Cabaret’s offering, El Bizarro: Glamour! Danger! Freaks!
This is a modern day freak show, hosted by the irrepressible force of vaudevillian enthusiasm, Magnus Danger Magnus. It’s circus, it’s burlesque, it’s the sort of stuff that will make you scream, laugh, pound your feet against the boards, and bang your hands together until they are bloody stumps at the ends of your withered, tired arms.
The venue staff gave an almost constant stream of warnings to the audience as they arrived and then again as they were ushered to their seats.
“It’s an R-rated show” they said. We chuckled and assured them that we knew. “It’s got adult content”, they persisted. We rolled our eyes and said we’d be fine.
We were not fine.
Sure, we didn’t faint - as a member of the previous night’s crowd did - but there were moments when we clutched our hands to our mouths, eyes wide with wonder as the show unfurled before us. The performers, all immensely skilled in their own right, delivered stunning demonstrations of their talents and we lapped it up like the baying, starving dogs of cabaret that we were.
Magnus Danger Magnus brought it all together, the consummate host that he is. Almost bubbling over with excitement about what we’d soon be seeing, he perfectly married the energetic hype of a carnival promoter with the maniacal glee of a serial killer.
The opening week’s lineup is astounding, featuring the devastatingly powerful and limber Karl Kayoss; the twisted, avant-garde burlesque of Vivian Marlowe; Damien Kenny’s dark, horrifying sideshow; the riotously sexy Vesper White; and finally Circus Carnis sickening the audience to their cores.
El Bizarro: Glamour! Danger! Freaks! is a rampant display of the darkest circus that there is to be experienced. It's a must see, provided you have the mettle.
Tickets available from the FRINGE WORLD website.
GLEN SEABROOK-BENSON