Vamp Till Ready

Elise Brennan talks to Coral Drouyn about her new one woman show, Vamp, featuring the songs of Kander and Ebb.

VAMP. Def 1. An introductory piece of music which is repeated till ready

              Def 2.  The Front part of a shoe.

              Def 3.  A Femme Fatale of Disarming Allure

              Def 4   The name of Elise Brennan’s new show.

With all the spectacular productions on at the moment, it can be easy for a small show to slip through the cracks, but the small shows are often the most perfect little gems that you regret not picking up.

Elise Brennan is the Vamp in the title….but all the other definitions count as well. Expect to see some Badass girls on  show as she sizzles her way through some of the most iconic Sexy Girls in Music. Kander and Ebb are the perfect songwriters, after all, they created “Chicago”and All That Jazz…. And it doesn’t get much more Badass than that.

The show is written and directed by Nicholas Christos, himself a fine performer and winner of many awards, and the co-writer of the smash schools production – “POPSTARS – The 90s musical.  With the amazing Jack Earle at the piano….at 19 he already has a list of credits that many retired musos would envy… he has created a show which specifically show off the talents of the gorgeous Ms Brennan, and it’s not surprising she’s excited.

“It’s fabulous doing a big musical, a book show,” she tells me (Elise has been part of Jersey Boys as Frankie Valli’s wife, and in Pippin, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum with Geoffrey Rush, and a host of other shows), “but there’s a different vibe to cabaret style shows and I love it when I’m working in a girl group – like The Dream Divas – and you really get to connect with the audience at close quarters. The next step was always going to be going solo.”

One would think that having just got married to the gob-smackingly talented Luigi Lucente that Elise would want to sit back and play “Sadie – Married Lady” for a time, but she laughs at the idea.  “Luigi is always working on something, and we did know when we married that we wouldn’t get to work together that often. In some ways it’s good that we have separate projects. But I must admit it is tempting.”

Given that Kander and Ebb have such a great range of songs, what can we expect in Vamp?

“Well,” she says thoughtfully, “there are the obvious ones of course, ‘New York, New York’, ‘Cabaret’, ‘Maybe This Time’, and of course ‘All That Jazz’, but there are a few surprises in there as well….I’m keeping them a secret. You’ll just have to see the show.”

With ticket prices a very generous $30….and $25 concession…including Students and MEAA members, there’s no excuse not to go.

Vamp opens at

Ruby's Music Room
Cnr Bennetts Lane & Little Londsdale Street 
Melbourne
(Entrance on Bennetts Lane)

On Thursday 20^th August.