Delectable Shelter

This is the kind of wacky show where the writer/director Benedict Hardie was probably stoned when it was written or if he wasn't then it makes you want to spend a few hours with him to find out what makes him so naturally high.

The story follows the evolution of a group of people who have been put in an underground shelter in the aftermath of an apocalypse, how they survive and continue the human race. It all sounds pretty earnest and depressing but Delectable Shelter is billed as a comedy and it does deliver on this account. But it is so absurd and ridiculous that the story doesn't really matter and there really isn't much point to it.

However as new piece of theatre on all fronts it is very well executed and Benny Davis' musical compositions of placing pop songs in a baroque style are quite clever and funny.

The cast are all actors who can sing very well and their performances are detailed and flawless. Yesse Spence as Biddy, the perfect cross between a Stepford wife with a secret and an Avon Lady, is a standout.

Claude Marcos' set gives the appropriate feel of a creepy underground claustrophobic room and Esther Marie Hayes' costumes give sense that everyone is generic and homogenous. While the sound (Alister Mew) and lighting (Lucy Brikinshaw) both add to ethereal nature of the show.

If you are looking for just pure entertainment then Delectable Shelter is for you.

Whitney Fitzsimmons.

Photographer: Pia Johnson