On The Scene // The Secret Circus: Love Affair
Date: 12/02/15 @ Parr Street Studios (And AGAIN I say to you, if you weren’t here, I get to
laugh in your face, like this: HAAAHAHAHAAA-)
The Unrequited Love of Naffrodite...
Word must have got around from the last Circus, because
by 8:00pm, every candle-lit table was seated to capacity. Now, there was a wee
bit o’ tension floating around about an hour before doors opened, but only
because the Circus team knew they’d left some pretty big footprints to fill
from the premier extravaganza… All was dispelled, however, the moment the last
bit of drapery was hung from the entrance doors, and we began to feel our blood
pumping at the prospect of tonight’s delights.Drop-dead gorgeous hosts Chanel Samson and Eve Howlett in luscious
red-dress welcomed guests, and introduced Spoken Word artist and Performer, Frankii Phoenix on
stage.
In what I can only describe as a godly garb complete with
twinkling lights, heart-shaped shades, and a Hawaiian flower robe, Naffrodite swept on stage and began her
serenade. Phoenix is a stage natural; we gathered she would be during the
crowd’s entrance, stroking arms, sweeping from table to table handing out
Lovehearts, and immersing herself thoroughly in character. In a poem about
unrequited love, the goddess filled the room with sighs and laughter in an ode
to EasyRider#Fine69. A bow and a kiss, Naffrodite departed from the
stage, most likely to scout out a new heart to break over. Loved it!
Unfortunately, due to Stage-Hand duties, I was completely unable to take any notes, and missed the middle of Ayaka Furukawa’s quite haunting dance routine. Another immersive character, Furukawa fell against invisible tides in terrific movements, slowing her whole body to the point of the next fall. I’ve found myself getting more and more eager to see Dance as more prominent art form in Liverpool – it’s something we all do (if you call the 5th-JD-Shot-Flail a creditable dance move), so how come I’ve only heard of a handful of Dance organisations across town? Any informants amongst you do get in touch!
Liverpool Comes to Hollywood
The whole set was a riot – a piece involving whipping a
prop flower from an audience-member’s cock-hold, blind-folded, was the
highlight of a simply outrageous performance. Everyone loved it! She was a
barrel of laughs, making obscenely over-the-top gestures, and caressing our
“volunteer’s” arse like he belonged to her, which for a time, he totally did.
After a brief intermission which allowed us all to catch
our breaths and smooth down our pant-lines, juggler-extraordinarre Simon West threw us into true
Circus overdrive with an unbelievable juggling act. The man had balls… 3, no 4,
no 5! The tricks were off the scales; graceful, disorientating, an absolute joy
to watch from start to finish. To top it off, West spent the remainder of the
evening blowing minds with crowd-based magic tricks!
Y’see, Samson and Howlett crave absolute entertainment –
the acts aren’t just limited to their stage-time, they’re made to feel totally
free to explore and practice their art on us, and there’s no one who hasn’t got
a grin on their face.
Things Get A Bit Coquette
My personal highlight of the evening, and not just
because Minxie Coquette
strips down to nout but taped nipples! Coquette, in two completely stunning
acts, sent our blood pounding through our- skulls. Our skulls! I was going to
say… skulls. She was just flawless, and bursting with theatricality! She
centred her routines around story-based themes – the first as a maid attempting
to open a bird-cage, and the second as Ms Captain America. Each had a bangin’
soundtrack, but it was the grace of her gestures that caught my attention.
Coquette emanated class, confidence, and above all, fun! Burlesque is, after
all, a spectacular art form which takes years of practice to refine your
movements, timing, and on-stage persona – otherwise you’re just getting naked
on a platform like someone having a mental breakdown on their
mid-life-crisis-themed 50th birthday. Or anyone still in the Krazyhouse.
After the applause for Minxie finally died down, we were
treated to the raucous comedy of two members of Impropriety,
consisting of two Yorkshire-ish-esque psychics in a Whose Line Is It Anyway
double-act. Tending to my duties, I asked if they needed anything before they
went on, to which I got the reply, ‘Vodka.’ The room was in stitches from the
opening gags; both performers bouncing off each other with ease, and (quite
literally) commanded the spirits of improv comedy. As well as performing in Threshold
Festival V, you can catch Impropriety at The Kazimier
The 2015 Liverpool Improvathon:
The Speed of a Lyon, The Grace of La Zel, The Mnemonics
of Matt McGurty
No description on Earth will ever do what happened next
the justice it deserves. Lyons and La Zel,
James Lyons and Léa La Zel of The Fire
Beneath The Sea, blew the house down. Lyons on guitar
and beatbox is all La Zel needs to form a groove – a true two-person army. The
funk was alive, the beat was bitchin', and La Zel's lyrical prowess is unrivalled.
Every song was a treat and a badass beat!
La Zel left the stage to riotous applause, and put us in
the hands of Lyons' flute-boxing magic. The crowd just howled with joy,
it was an unbelievable sight! Pulling out a multitude of harmonicas next, Lyons
bust out one of the most memorable performances I've ever seen, and made a
believer out of me: that is, a believer in the bad-assery of beatboxing.
Adrenaline was coarsing through our veins after that, and
what we needed was a concentrated dose of pure talent wrapped-up for us in an
airtight package – and that's exactly what we got. Matthew
McGurty & The Mnemonics were the balm on our
aching bones! I've seen Matt rock the house on his lonesome with nout but a
guitar and a bass drum, but give him and the Mnemonics a stage and you'll never
want to leave your seat. Track <Alien> had all who remained
swaying, and sipping 'oo's and 'ahh's, and after looking around with a grin, I
felt totally and utterly at ease with my surroundings. Don't you dare
miss McGurty's new vid 'Rabbit Hole' featuring Thom
Morecroft, Sara Franczyk,
and the Circus' own golden wonder Chanel Samson,
right here:
There's Gold On The Horizon!
If you miss the next Circus THIS THURSDAY [05/03/15],
you will be missing Samson's own Single release #WorthTheGold, Lola Rogue
walking on glass, Petra
Kucerova and her crew of
fire-performers, the Spoken Word genius of Crafty
Conscious, and so
much more... If you miss it, I'm gonna let the clowns out of their cages and
set them on your trail... So I'll see you there then!
Details: https://www.facebook.com/events/627797294017068
