Confused Gender Comedy

The Butterfly Club is a fine cabaret and comedy venue which relocated from the South of the city into the very heart of it some months ago, bringing along its eclectic collection of dolls, trinkets, pictures, furniture and nick-nacks.
Last night I was there to see 'Corps(e)' a play with musical interludes concerning itself with the fascinating tale of Le Chevalier d'Eon who was a spy and bon vivant during the reign of Louis XV performed by drag artiste Simon Morrison-Baldwin.
Sadly, that's about all I can tell you about the story as my wife and I could make neither head nor tail of due to the rambling nature of the exposition, the forgetfulness of the performer and the sudden insertion of songs which did not appear relevant to the tale.
Perhaps I am judging this production too harshly as it garnered decent amounts of applause from the majority of our fellow patrons and perhaps it will improve over its run, but - given the brevity of the run and the fact that this was the second night - I have my doubts.
This show clearly needs further rehearsal time to allow Morrison-Baldwin time to become more familiar with the character and his lines. The accompanist was effortlessly professional, providing the necessary prompts throughout and leant the necessary air of refined restraint to the production.
All-in-all this was a disappointing show which could have been so much more given the time and effort.

Shock And Awe Theatre

As last night's performance of 'MKA - Unsex Me' ended, my wife turned to me, saying, "Review that!" throwing a metaphorical gauntlet at my feet.
Well - challenge accepted!
Firstly, let me say that this is not a show for the squeamish. Or those who dislike overt sexual content, audience participation, heteronormative zealots or Andrew Bolt (although watching his blood-pressure rise throughout until his head went 'Pop!' would be diverting).
You will no doubt hear about this show through its notoriety and the outrage it will provoke in those bastions of morality and purity - the mainstream press. Most of this will focus on one single scene which is the most confronting act I have witnessed performed live on stage. I won't spoil the surprise just in case you happen to be curious enough to want to see this show.
In isolation, with no supporting context, the scene has no justification other than to shock and disgust, but in the context of this full performance it establishes a back story to the twisted and perverse personality of our protagonist, the award-winning actress Mark Wilson.
Yes - you read that last part correctly.
Wilson's performance here is astonishing. Full of passion and utterly fearless, he dominates the small stage of Son of Loft at the Lithuanian Club for the entire 50 minutes of the show's run time, never once betraying any signs of trepidity. He handles the spectrum of performance required of him very professionally and is equally convincing when answering dull questions from an unseen interviewer as he is during the more intense scenes later on.
The venue was completely sold-out and when we arrived, there was another room full of people loitering in the hopes of sneaking-in at the back. They were to be sorely disappointed.
If you have an open mind and very few hang-ups, then give this a try - but you have been warned.
'MKA: UnSex Me' is on at the Lithuanian Club until October 5th.