Three of the happiest, and I have to say, most talented musicians at the fringe, jam a cool funky jazz in the Wine bar at the Gilded Balloon as the audience take their seats. MD Dr Joe Twist on keys, Hannah James on bass and Lauren Allison on drums – who I swear was evoking the spirit of Animal from the Muppets. Boy this girl can drum and you just know, know it comes straight from her soul.
Then, with only what I can describe as an explosion in a cupcake factory, involving a sea of taffeta, orchestrated by Cyndi Lauper – times six – the girls entered the stage. Lady Sings It Better had arrived and I knew my life would never be the same again.
Maeve, Chandra, Libby, Belinda, Monique and Jenni make up this Aussie oddball sextet! These delightfully harmonic sirens reminded me of those misfits who once sat at the back of the class – including your reviewer – never fitting in. An all nerd’s salute. The shy, the naïve, the queer, the geeks and the fat – their words not mine – who’ve blossomed into beautiful, talented and fully rounded individuals, hotties even, that embrace and paint the universe a resplendent colour with a minxy grin and a cheeky wink.
In a nutshell, the premise of this vivacious and charismatic cabaret is a bunch of ladies singing their hearts and souls through a catalogue of male musical mayhem. Girls performing boys songs is not the most original idea, but what these lovelies do is breath new life, with their fresh, unique style, into these male classics that wow and entertain like no other. From Michael Jackson to Nine Inch Nails and an awesome ‘Doo Wop’ Peter Andre to boot, the set list is a magical assortment, which is best unsaid and left to surprise your ears.
They claim they ‘sing it better’ and let me tell you they all can sing, sing, sing and then some. With elegant, pleasing and soaring vocal arrangements, Lady Sings It Better ooze such harmonising talent that would make any composer proud to call their own.
So they can sing and indeed, they can’t dance, but that makes for hilarious comedy. Each animated lady joyously revels in the shapes and grooves that she twists and throws. Their playful banter has the right tone, but what really captured me – what truly propelled me into the world of Lady Sings It Better – was how human they all are. The friendships wash over from the stage with mutual respect, love and gratitude. It’s honest, it’s simple and it’s beautiful, a winning formula and I hope they embrace it with every waking hour.
Maeve, Chandra, Libby, Belinda, Monique and Jenni energetically prowl like six sexy and playful kittens, hanging loose in the vibrant land of cabaret, by the way of ‘OZ’. Grab them now, before it’s too late and FYI, Dr Joe Twist’s maraca dance is the frosting on the cupcake.
Lady Sings It Better! I don’t mean to let the side down gents, but they do!
