Limbo, Spiegeltent, Melbourne Festival, Wednesday October 21st 2015

Limbo, Spiegeltent, Melbourne Festival, Wednesday October 21st 2015

"Limbo" was presented at the Spiegeltent for the Melbourne Festival by Strut and Fret Production House, Underbelly Productions and Southbank Centre (London).

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You are welcomed into another world as you enter the Spiegeltent.   "Limbo" is directed by Scott Maidment with varying degrees of success.

The opening announcement for "Limbo" was terrific as it created a sense of expectation.  I also loved their insistence of turning off mobile phones and no photography.  This is the first show at the 2015 Melbourne Festival where there has NOT been an incident with phones or cameras.  LOUD CHEERING OF APPRECIATION! (Well by me - anyway!)

The band entered along the walkway to the central ring and then assumed their positions upstage.  Mick Stuart played multiple instruments.  I was intrigued at him playing his own invention of The Polymba.  It was like a huge acoustic sound engineering table with lots of weird shapes to pluck and push and process.  I could not get a close up enough to zoom in and see the mechanics and must congratulate him on the amazing sounds generated.

I adored the clear glass bowl used by Elyas Khan to create some beautiful tunes.  Especially the coin rolling around the inside of the bowl was simple and effective.  Sadly the first show we saw at the Melbourne Festival "NYX" could have learnt from this simple action.

Tigris is a German force to be reckoned with.  He is a contortionist of the first degree.  He is proud but not arrogant in his demeanour.  Tigris has flexibility, strength and control that makes his routine compelling.  Tigris is a handsome man with his back fully tattooed. 

The Balancing Act by the Russian Danik Abishev was terrific.  The segue and entrance into this routine reminded me of a famous circus painting (the name escapes me!)  He was carried with his hands and feet in irons as he was hanging between two of the five poles.  I particularly enjoyed his opening moves that also ensured that the 5 poles were housed correctly. His swivelling and twisting his body into various shapes showed his superb athletic skills in top condition.

The tap routine with Hilton Denis and Heather Holliday was adequate and well executed with reasonably clear beats.  Choreographically it was not as exciting as it could have been.  The alternate wings are a classic applause inducing step.  His wing beats were very good.  They included a rhythmic "question and answer" with clapping and tapping.  This built up slightly and could have pushed the boundaries more.

The Chinese Pole is a single vertical pole that Mikael Bres scaled and wrapped his body around.  He would then slide down in various positions.  Mikael Bres created a sense of fun and mischief with his body and his seductive eyes.  Though I thought some of the sliding down finishes were not as tight as his earlier examples.  I admire his skill and wonder how he does not get sweaty and make the pole even more slippery.  His engagement with the audience was alluring and teasing.

The segue with the couple sitting at the end of the long entrance was fun.  The others would enter and balance on their heads.  This couple were being interrupted in their personal relationship.  It had a story and worked beautifully.  I craved for more of these moments.

Three cast set their long poles into the floor close to the audience and then scaled them.  At the top they strapped in their legs with their feet planted on the foot rests.  They leant forward and backwards and sideways to create patterns.  The poles leant so far in each direction to create an uncomfortable feeling for the audience.  The three fine performers came within crashing into each other with their close calls.  It was theatrical and tension building.  They even spun around in their seats and leant forward into the crowd.  One man performed high 5's with his audience members and later grabbed a beer, and then returned the beer upon his next forward lurch into the crowd.  This was entertaining and theatrical.  It had the audience loving every minute of their playful antics.  I long for more of this theatricality.

The Sword Swallower routine .by Heather Holliday was uncomfortable for some patrons as they squirmed in their seats.  You craved for more of this type of act.  When we see television shows like "Carnivale" or "American Horror Story" we want to be pushed with being scarred or dared.  She used two swords and then later used a fluorescent light bulb down her throat.  The lights dimmed appropriately for us to savour her "deep throat" ability.

The Fire Eating routine was by Heather Holliday.  Her entrance with men juggling fire sticks was edgy in this enclosed Spiegeltent.   It heightened our sense of  danger and safety.

A man cleaned the floor to ensure there was no residue after the fire eating act.  We needed more to distract us than the band playing music.  There was an opportunity for a clown type distraction or a more varied pulsating lighting change to add interest here.  The music alone was not enough. 

The finale of the Aerial Hoop routine by Evelyne Allard was not as exciting as I have seen.  The execution was precise and performed with skill. I wanted to see more showmanship, bravado and proud flourishes at the conclusion of some tricks.  The final sequence of stepping into the box with the steps underneath was not up to scratch for such a close location.   The mechanics of the magic were lost by the obvious design of the staircase.  This routine would have worked in a larger theatre. The way this routine was choreographed gave away the whole trick as soon as she stepped into the box being so careful to stay to the left.  Hello - the audience are not dumb.  More effective lighting to divert attention could have altered my perception or more use of distractions.  I did expect her to pop up from underneath the main stage and the head of the bunny coming to life.  Not to be.  Her entrance to stage left was a bit too passe due to the lack of lighting and musical fanfare.  Had she come up through the stage would have been more exciting.  Sadly not a show-stopper final act.

Segues and transitions varied in complexity and theatrical value.  At times there were huge holes in the production due to the lack of engagement with the audience between acts.  Where as there were some clever transitions that were more thoughtful in their choreographic and theatrical intentions.  The lighting was not fully realised in these segues.

One segue I enjoyed was when Heather Holliday walked en pointe in red pointe shoes. This was such a brief moment of walking en pointe!   The red pointe shoes needed a clean and had seen many shows.  Or maybe buy some new ones.

The Set and Lighting Design by Philip Gladwell varied in approach and execution.  The staging was the raised pathway leading to a central raised ring about two to three metres in diameters. The band stand was at the back with a central entrance and was in classical circus layout.  There was also one stairway leading to the ring area.  (Maybe there was another staircase on the left side also but we could not see it).

The lighting when at its best was when it was theatrical and had old fashioned circus pizzazz.  The effect of the tunnels of lighting creating an enclosed cage for the balancing act was brilliant.  

Choreographically the hat and cane routine was very sloppy.  I have seen Fosse style choreography many times and the dropping of hats and canes is inexcusable on more than one occasion.  Once is an accident, twice or thrice is sloppy.  The footwork and bodies need to be slicker and sharper in their execution of the steps and be able to contrast to any fluid moves. Compare this to a "Pippin" routine with their crisp and clean execution.

Choreographically and staging wise the director had 270 degrees available to the audience.  The other 90 degrees was used for the band and two aisles for entrances.  Sadly much of the choreography and staging was directed outward as if in a proscenium theatre.  It was only during the swinging poles routine and the caged Balancing Act where the action was directed out to more areas. There was also a short section of the tap routine that was directed to the 270 degrees.

I yearned for more Burlesque and Vaudeville style provocative stances and choreography from both sexes.  See any version of "Gypsy" with the three strippers and their bawdy ribald routines and compare with this choreography (from "You Gotta Have a Gimmick") and you will know what I mean.  I wanted choreography that made these women goddesses or sirens rather than glazed over eye contact with their potentially adoring fans. Overall the men provided more of the teasing and seductive qualities at times.

Costume Design by Zoe Rouse was adequate and not as exciting as I have seen for this type of show. The red outfit worn by Heather Holliday was the closest to theatrical.  As was the tulle overdress worn by Evelyne Allard.  The men's outfits were serviceable for each performer's purpose.  They needed grander capes and jackets that they could discard.  The white suit worn by  Elyas Khan also had the sense of cabaret for this show.  Though do clean the white boots please.  Scuffed white boots detract from this magnificent costume.

I was impressed with the overall quality of the singing by all performers.  The sounds made by Elyas Khan were varied and skilfully executed.  The volume levels were not excessive; which was such a relief as sometimes I have been to similar shows and have been deafened.  Thank you for the appropriate sound levels.  Mikael Bres provides some beat-box music to the show as well.

I thought 75 minutes was a good time and it could have been ten minutes shorter for the audience to beg for more.  Or with improving their segues and transitions "Limbo" could be a tighter 75 minutes. 

I do not care about the supposed awards a show can be coveted.  I have seen many shows in every genre over 49 years and will give credit where due. 

Individually each of the acts varied from between a 7 and 9/10.  It was the gaping holes and lack of quality filler, segues and transitions that reduced my overall score for the entire show.  This was an excellent Fringe Festival rather than a great  Melbourne Festival show.

Overall my partner and myself each gave this show a 6.5/10.  It could be an 8/10  or 9/10 with revisions.