Cabaretica

Post Covid days are here and La Mama Courthouse is back on boards. Cabaretica is a quarterly, one-off late-night show, curated by Susan Bamford Caleo and Isabel Knight. It is a viable platform for cabaret artists to experiment and play with new ideas, but more importantly it gives up-and-coming talent a venue to gain confidence and skills.

Tonight’s performance is mc’d by Maude Davey, who begins the show with a raunchy faux chic version of Patti Smith’s ‘Gloria’. She looks rather handsome in her pin striped suit and is equally mean and sharp as a grungy punk songstress in ‘Mansize’ by PJ Harvey.  

Cabaretica features new talents and Willow Sizer is on the make - she oozes sweet charm and sophistication in her version of ‘Get Happy’, originally sung by Judy Garland. She has a charismatic stage presence and a smooth velvety voice to match. A rising star on the cabaret scene, she is destined to win hearts.

Lockdown was hard on us all and Mama Alto is happy to be back on stage after a long hiatus. A loud and proud transgender and queer person of colour and a diva in her own right, she offers a powerful interpretation of ‘What A Wonderful World’, originally sung by Louis Armstrong. Equally touching were Roberta Flack’s ‘First Time Ever l Saw Your Face’ and a sweet rendition of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Songbird’.

Cabaretica is a ninety-minute bundle of entertainment. The next show is scheduled for June 4^th, so check the La Mama website for details.

Flora Georgiou