Anti Valentine’s Ball
Royal Vauxhall Tavern
Reviewed – 14th February 2018
★★★★
“This was not your typical Valentine’s night out and romance was definitely off the cards.”
Pop Horror’s Anti Valentine’s Ball can only be described as a completely unique and wacky experience. Held at the Royal Vauxhall Tavern, the Ball was a combination of acts, games and performances, all completely different and exciting. The night started off with each person being given a sticker to indicate whether they were single, in a relationship, or ‘it’s complicated’. At this point it was clear that audience participation was going to be a huge part of the night.
The Vauxhall Tavern is a relatively small bar with a stage and DJ booth. Playing on the screen were gruesome clips from horror movies whilst pop tunes from the 80s onwards played over the speakers. Milling around were people dressed as characters from horror movies – The Grudge, Hannibal Lecter and even Alex Forrest from Fatal Attraction (complete with bunny in a saucepan). This was not your typical Valentine’s night out and romance was definitely off the cards.
There were some amazing drag performances, especially notable was Rhys’ Pieces, who gave the most amazing performance after presenting the first portion of the night. There were also a multitude of weird and wonderful acts throughout, including people being covered in fruit whilst singing a rendition of Dolly Parton’s 9 to 5, an interesting and creepy take on some ballroom dancing, and burlesque with a twist that involved a furry creature with lots of teeth. There was absolutely no telling what was coming next and the wide array of different performances provided a thoroughly entertaining night.
Nurse Dysentery was a particular favourite of the evening, presenting the second portion of the night. After explaining that she had been ‘sent by the NHS’, she then proceeded to give a hilarious PowerPoint presentation on how to practice safe sex and how to explore various fetishes in a ‘safe’ way.
However, the audience were in no way left out of the antics. During the interval we got to take part in ‘speed hating’, in which we’d ask our partners questions including ‘worst habit’ and ‘leave or remain’. There was also a ‘Damaged Goods Tombola’ in which people won prizes including rice pudding and a toilet plunger. To finish the night off, we got to participate in a sing along to Bonnie Tyler’s Total Eclipse of the Heart.
This was definitely a night to remember. It was wacky, weird and totally unmissable if you like to spend Valentine’s Day in a completely untraditional way. Whilst the night itself ran into a few bumps and things didn’t always go to plan, it was still an evening very well spent, and one which none of the audience will be forgetting any time soon.
Reviewed by Charlotte Cox
Anti Valentine’s Ball
Royal Vauxhall Tavern
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