There’s Something About Mary(s)

After seeing some tragically untalented cabaret performers in my life, I admit to approaching There’s Something About Mary(s) with some trepidation. Thankfully, performer Cassie George and musician Luke Volker presented a top-class, rib-tickling and energetic act. It was everything you want from a cabaret show.

Cassie had a beautiful singing voice and charisma to burn. She had that special sparkle in her eyes and a great connection with the audience and her co-performer Luke. Speaking of Mr Volker, his piano playing was out of this world. He made devilishly tricky pieces sound effortless. He also had a wonderful rapport with Cassie during the show.

The lighting by Scott West was perfectly on point. I especially loved the stars shining through the backdrop. Staging was minimalist, utilitarian and didn’t distract from the stars of the show. The scripting was good and didn’t suffer from prolix self-indulgence. It was personal, light-hearted and genuinely humorous. There were plenty of well-known tunes and great toe-tappers in the show, some of which had been tweaked with new lyrics to suit Cassie’s storytelling.

The show is definitely relatable for any lady who has fallen in love with a gay man, has chosen the wrong straight partner or has found herself surrounded with fabulous gay friends (so, pretty much every woman on the planet). I took my boyfriend who said it was still relatable for a male audience. In fact, we both had a wonderful evening of laughter at this show. It was especially fun when Cassie invited the whole crowd to get up and sing and dance with her to Cher’s Life After Love at the end.

There’s Something About Mary(s) is fun, sexy and entertaining cabaret performed by talented professionals. It’s playing soon at Brisbane Powerhouse for the Wonderland Festival. I can recommend it as a good date night if you’re after some light-hearted entertainment.

Kiesten McCauley