Cabaret Décadanse

Festival Theatre Stage, 12–14 June

An absolutely gripping entertainment, Cabaret Décadanse takes a high quality sample of cabaret hits and places them alongside masterful puppetry and some natty physical theatre.

The brainchild of Canadian puppeteer Serge Deslauriers emerged from his experience with Théâtre Sans Fil, which uses giant puppets. Deslauriers wanted to bring it all down to a manageable size, and when the opportunity came to participate in Montreal’s Just For Laughs Festival in 1999, Cabaret Décadanse was born.

With co-performer Enock Turcotte, Deslauriers manipulates, to stunning effect, a range of more-or-less half life-size puppets as they sing, dance, and shimmy along. The manipulation of a single, complex character is an extraordinarily intimate art, and fortunately, after ten years, Deslauriers and Turcotte know each other so well that they fit together perfectly, an arm sliding through here, a leg there, with the result that the characters truly come to life.

And what characters they are. Lorraine La Diva, a faded rose if ever there was, gin soaked but sparkling in sequins. Chica, recently paroled after a stint inside for undisclosed discretions, now earning a few bob any way she can. Ahem. Mauve, a dubious ingénue if ever there was. And more. They magically move through “Love Me Or Leave Me”, “Honeysuckle Rose” and even Yma Sumac’s “Mambo!” “Take Me Back To Manhatten” is a great song, and lulled the audience into a false sense of security, especially the brave audience member who helped out in an interactive performance of “History Repeating”! Big Gay Al’s “I’m Super” was simply a scream.

Deslauriers and Turcotte are supported by André-Anne Leblanc, mainly behind the mask of MC Amfitrona, but herself getting well and truly into the mix with her long and shapely legs. But having said that, Turcotte himself strikes a mean pose in fishnets – once you’ve wiped the surprise off your face, because you didn’t have a clue where those legs were coming from!

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