Not Nicole Kidman on anatomic steroids, but the love child of Ethel Merman and Ernest Borgnine, diva extraordinare Varla Jean Merman brassily boasts a treasure chest of cabaret mayhem.
The man who, rubber chicken on a pole, once took bemused Melburnians on an impromptu tour of unlikely places, leads his audience up the stairs at the Swiss Club singing Eidelweiss.
Andrea Powell delivers quick random humour embedded in a punchy and well crafted self-written script, as she talks to her audience about her personal experiences of modern dating including the many ‘nutjobs’ she has encountered.
A detective develops a fear of heights after a chase across city rooftops leads to a near fatal fall. It’s this weakness that will prevent him from saving the wife of a close friend from falling to her death from a bell tower. Sound familiar?
This is an original and powerful production that blends history and realism with the fantastic and the romantic. Musically it is satisfying and uplifting. Dramatically, it grows from an uncertain opening to a lively and passionate second act.