AN EVENING OF BURLESQUE at the Adelphi Theatre

★★★★

“The flame haired Ivy Paige hosts, with an assured and well-worn flamboyance”

When ‘Burlesque’ was imported from the United States in the mid nineteenth century it was designed for an exclusively male audience, with its bawdy content and exposed flesh. Raids by the police, prompted by offended citizens, were not uncommon. By the 1940s it had lost popularity, but over the last twenty or so years it has come back with a bang. At the forefront of this resurgence is the seemingly never-ending tour of “An Evening of Burlesque”, which stopped off in London’s West End for one night only.

Burlesque’s audience has widened beyond recognition as the art form has slipped into the mainstream, shedding much of its risqué reputation as swiftly as a sequined corset. Still a far cry from becoming family entertainment, its move into thousand-plus seater venues is bound to soften its edges. Luckily, many of the company members of “An Evening of Burlesque” have large enough personalities to bridge the distance between performer and audience as they dish up their blend of cabaret, comedy, music, vaudeville; and the occasional misbehaving tassel.

The flame haired Ivy Paige hosts, with an assured and well-worn flamboyance. When she dips into chanteuse mode, her rich vocals offer some of the highlights of the evening, but she never wants to steal the show, preferring to sashay aside and let her guests do the entertaining. First up is femme fatale Belle de Beauvoir, dependably personifying the genre – it was only after interval that her Belle Epoque sassiness was truly exposed. Similarly, the powerhouse that is Velvet Jones was struggling to stand out from the crowd, even if her costume could probably be picked up by satellite. So far the evening is being painted by numbers, a feeling that even Isabella Bliss – in her Marilyn Monroe guise – does little to dispel.

“As the variety creeps in our misgivings seep out, leaving space for us to sit back and have fun”

But as the show shapeshifts to fill the venue, finally reaching out onto the far corners, the magic is eventually conjured. Sebastian Angelique commands the stage in a blaze. A true ‘showboy’, he plays with fire. Literally so. He eats it too, by the way. He incorporates into his act a thrilling affirmation that Burlesque is no longer the preserve of the fairer sex. By now the audience is ignited, which Saucy Davis Jr. doesn’t dampen with his velvet jacket and velvet voice and incredible tap-dancing feet – capturing the styles of Fred and Ginger, Sammy Davis Jr, Gene Kelly and the Nicholas Brothers in the space of a minute. We want more but he has other assets he wants to show us too.

Isabella Bliss returns to the stage, sans Monroe personage. Bigged up big time by Paige, expectations are ever so slightly beyond her reach, until her finale which is pure, parodic pastiche. Over-the-top and gorgeous. Exactly what we want. Meanwhile, though, if we can rewind a bit, guest star Christian Lee – Britain’s Got Talent finalist – closes the first act with his unique blend of magic, illusion and laugh-out-loud comedy. And, of course, audience participation, which is par for the course. Beware if you find yourself in the front few rows. The warning extends to the performers too. In particular Matt Pang who probably wishes he had brought somebody else up on stage to help him with his gravity defying escapology act. A brilliant performance, perhaps enhanced by the ad-lib comedy Pang brought forth from the near disaster.

Interweaving the acts are the L’Sheila Showgirls who transport us back to the heady days of Variety. “An Evening of Burlesque” is a show that reminds us that Burlesque isn’t just about striptease. In fact, the standout moments are indeed those where clothes are kept on. The evening begins with the worry that all we’ll see are similar ways in which a glove or a stocking can be removed. But that’s just a tease. As the variety creeps in our misgivings seep out, leaving space for us to sit back and have fun. Which is what it is all about. A real crowd-pleaser: classy and sassy.

AN EVENING OF BURLESQUE at the Adelphi Theatre

Reviewed on 9th October 2023

by Jonathan Evans

Photography by Martin Reynolds

For future tour dates, click on the image below

Previously reviewed at this venue:

Back To The Future | ★★★★ | October 2021

An Evening of Burlesque

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★★★★

“There are brilliant nods to The History Boys in this performance, but it feels like a fresh, very current take on those dynamics.”

Three men sit in the welfare office of a prestigious British University. It is never stated whether it is Oxford or Cambridge, but it doesn’t matter, it’s one of the two. There has been an incident of plagiarism and one student, the quintessential lad about town Greg (Charlie Beck) is accused of copying his quiet bisexual peer Casper (Issam Al Ghussain). Bumbling and cringeworthy welfare officer ‘Timby’ (Edward Judge) just wants to show he’s one of the boys – he’s a student too! Laddish showboating, mute resentment and shameless pandering continue as do the reported incidents. But as the severity of the accusations escalates, so too does the complexity and moral confusion of these three characters.

Richard Speir’s direction complements Matt Parvin’s script to create a tense and uncomfortable piece, which subverts and contorts traditional power dynamics and builds a mounting sense of dread. The play is also very funny, especially at the beginning. The first half builds up archetypal characters which the second half breaks down. It could have taken it further, but the moral tangles and muddied sense of right and wrong which the play toys with are fascinating.

All three performers have shining moments. Beck brings emotional depth to the laddish party boy Greg, and his performance is genuinely moving. Al Ghussain has mesmerising physicality, demonstrated particularly in a piece of physical theatre during a dream sequence and a joyous moment of dance. However, the stand-out performance is from Edward Judge as the tragic, and easily swayed welfare officer. There are brilliant nods to The History Boys in this performance, but it feels like a fresh, very current take on those dynamics.

Cecilia Trono’s set is an evocative, naturalistic replica of this kind of office, and the attention to detail transports us there. Will Alder’s lighting design is able to go wild in a nightclub scene and a dream sequence, and Jamie Lu’s sound design becomes particularly interesting in the second half.

The play is not perfect, and there are certainly elements that don’t work. For example, there are repeated references to General Franco’s attitude to gay men, which is not explored in enough detail to make it worth including, and feels like a lack of confidence in the beautiful simplicity of this concept. The best part of this play is the claustrophobic moral mess that these three men are trapped in. However, the idea behind this play, and the way it explores it, is interesting enough to make it recommendable.

Category Archives: Reviews

An Evening of Burlesque

★★★★

Adelphi Theatre

AN EVENING OF BURLESQUE at the Adelphi Theatre

★★★★

“The flame haired Ivy Paige hosts, with an assured and well-worn flamboyance”

“As the variety creeps in our misgivings seep out, leaving space for us to sit back and have fun”