Monday, May 18, 2009
Lady Carol of the Moon 14/5
You know you've just seen a special show when you leave the venue too stunned to talk.
That was everyone's reaction last night after a staggering performance by Lady Carol of the Moon, a vivacious Irish musical comedian with a ukulele and one of the biggest voices you'll ever hear. Despite the comic interludes, delivered with an easy charm and engaging verve, this was a dark, unsettling show, opening with a version of Nirvana's Heart Shaped Box which perfectly set the tone for the rest of the evening. The take on Radiohead's Creep genuinely sent a shiver down the spine, and The Show Must Go On was almost heartbreaking.
The couple of hundred of us in the audience were left in no doubt that we were surely privileged to have witnessed this startling one-off performance at St Andrew's Church, and if Lady Carol returns to Brighton, I'll be first in the queue.
However, the same couldn't be said for the Raymond and Mr Timpkins Review show later that evening at the same venue. Raymond and Mr T deliver a hilarious wordless physical comedy performance, using fast-cut snippets of songs which they mime to using placards with mis-heard lyrics, in a high-energy performance.
Unfortunately the acts in between their sketches were frankly appalling: a woman who wouldn't have lasted two minutes in an amateur open mic night and a man who made noises from the Battle of Britain until you wished the Stukas would appear and put us all out of our misery. Final stand-up Noel Brittan almost saved the day and was genuinely funny, but one out of three ain't good.
That was everyone's reaction last night after a staggering performance by Lady Carol of the Moon, a vivacious Irish musical comedian with a ukulele and one of the biggest voices you'll ever hear. Despite the comic interludes, delivered with an easy charm and engaging verve, this was a dark, unsettling show, opening with a version of Nirvana's Heart Shaped Box which perfectly set the tone for the rest of the evening. The take on Radiohead's Creep genuinely sent a shiver down the spine, and The Show Must Go On was almost heartbreaking.
The couple of hundred of us in the audience were left in no doubt that we were surely privileged to have witnessed this startling one-off performance at St Andrew's Church, and if Lady Carol returns to Brighton, I'll be first in the queue.
However, the same couldn't be said for the Raymond and Mr Timpkins Review show later that evening at the same venue. Raymond and Mr T deliver a hilarious wordless physical comedy performance, using fast-cut snippets of songs which they mime to using placards with mis-heard lyrics, in a high-energy performance.
Unfortunately the acts in between their sketches were frankly appalling: a woman who wouldn't have lasted two minutes in an amateur open mic night and a man who made noises from the Battle of Britain until you wished the Stukas would appear and put us all out of our misery. Final stand-up Noel Brittan almost saved the day and was genuinely funny, but one out of three ain't good.
***** UPDATE: Lady Carol won 'Best Music Event' at the Latest Brighton Festival & Fringe Awards, seeing off Antony & the Johnsons in a close-fought contest!
Review of Lady Carol in Hastings, 4.7.09
