After a solid launch in 2014, the Queensland Cabaret Festival is back with an expanded line-up of local and international acts ready to brighten your life and your mood. This year the festival has spread its wings, with the programme delivered across three venues: Brisbane Powerhouse, Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC) and Queensland Multicultural Centre.
Cabaret comes in many forms, but at its heart, it is an art form that owes as much to vaudeville as it does to circus or stand-up comedy or burlesque. It can be politically charged or seductive and sexy but whatever the message or the medium, cabaret is invariably a mix of music, song, dance, comedy and movement.
Tonight, we get to experience all of these as seven Brisbane divas dive deep into ol’ Blue Eyes’ back catalogue – reliving and reviving a dozen or so classic pop songs from another era. A time when the Rat Pack ruled Las Vegas and Frankie ruled the airwaves – stealing the hearts of millions.
Backed by a goodtime band who know how to swing, local songbirds Liz Buchanan, Jo Doyle, Jacqui Devereux, Claire Walters, Rebecca Grennan, Bethan Ellsmore and Melissa Western take on some of Sinatra’s biggest hits including Night and Day, ‘Fly Me To The Moon’, ‘I’ve Got The World On A String’, ‘Strangers In The Night’, ‘I’ve Got You Under My Skin’, and ‘My Way’.
While they share the vocal duties on a number of these tracks, each of the women get an opportunity to showcase their vocal range and abilities with all seven delivering outstanding solos.
‘Seven On Sinatra’ is light and breezy. The band do their job and the arrangements are tight. The three male dancers [who make a series of short cameo appearances] are clearly there just for fun but it all adds to the on-stage activity.
The ladies earned an encore and returned to the stage to deliver ‘My Way’, their way – sharing the vocals to Sinatra’s 1969 smash hit. The 70-minute cabaret-style show passed quickly, helped in part by the intimate ambience in which it happens. The Powerhouse Theatre was the perfect venue with low lights and café seating setting the mood.
Whether you want an evening soaked in nostalgia, a comedy or a contemporary romp of music re-imagined, check this year’s Cabaret Festival programme. You’re bound to find something that appeals.
Backed by a goodtime band who know how to swing, local songbirds Liz Buchanan, Jo Doyle, Jacqui Devereux, Claire Walters, Rebecca Grennan, Bethan Ellsmore and Melissa Western take on some of Sinatra’s biggest hits including Night and Day, ‘Fly Me To The Moon’, ‘I’ve Got The World On A String’, ‘Strangers In The Night’, ‘I’ve Got You Under My Skin’, and ‘My Way’.
While they share the vocal duties on a number of these tracks, each of the women get an opportunity to showcase their vocal range and abilities with all seven delivering outstanding solos.
‘Seven On Sinatra’ is light and breezy. The band do their job and the arrangements are tight. The three male dancers [who make a series of short cameo appearances] are clearly there just for fun but it all adds to the on-stage activity.
The ladies earned an encore and returned to the stage to deliver ‘My Way’, their way – sharing the vocals to Sinatra’s 1969 smash hit. The 70-minute cabaret-style show passed quickly, helped in part by the intimate ambience in which it happens. The Powerhouse Theatre was the perfect venue with low lights and café seating setting the mood.
Whether you want an evening soaked in nostalgia, a comedy or a contemporary romp of music re-imagined, check this year’s Cabaret Festival programme. You’re bound to find something that appeals.
