Despite the exceptional charm of host Bruce Devlin, the acts for
Despite Benn and Devlin’s best efforts, Cabaret at Le Monde was not a great show tonight.
Before I elaborate on the failures of Cabaret at Le Monde, credit should be given to its host, Devlin, who has everything one could wish for in a compère. Full of charm and with a wonderful feel for crowd work, he owns the stage and is worth every penny of the ticket price. His constant wit and fantastic flirting with the audience is delightful and he maintains an almost unrivalled composure throughout. But this show is about more than the host and Devlin could be only so much of a redeeming feature.
The lovely ladies of the expressive dance troupe Hustle are an entertaining start to the show, but do little to stand out from other similar groups and feels more like a warm up act than the main event. Later performers include stand-up Yianni Agisilaou who is an amusing character and enjoyable storyteller, but falls short as a comic. As an Australian with Greek-Cypriot roots, Agisilaou has a fun section on the Greek economy, but is a little incoherent in his direction and has an unfortunate style of self-deprecation which, unlike other comedians, adds little to the show and detracts from the rest of his set.
While Agisilaou and Hustle don’t offer anything special, neither spoil the show with such efficiency and lack of consideration as mentalist Doug Segal. Segal’s act as a mind reader lacks the humour or wow factor. Unprepared, uninspired and unfunny, Segal is rude to his audience and completely kills the mood in the otherwise fantastic venue. Of course Segal pulls off his trick – one would expect no less – but a show needs to be so much more than that and Segal lacks all the necessary charm and showmanship. Although I appreciate every act has a bad day, Segal needs a basic level of respect towards his audience. Segal didn’t want to be there and the crowd didn’t appreciate it.
With the musical comedian Mitch Benn closing the show, the mood in the room is lifted a little but it was far too late. With a comforting humour and charm, Benn’s songs are a musical treat as much as they are funny. However, despite Benn and Devlin’s best efforts, Cabaret at Le Monde was not a great show tonight. Your experience almost certainly will vary.
