‘Do you like bubbles?’ asks Louis Pearl of the audience, which was mainly comprised of families with small children. They responded appropriately and loudly. ‘I LOVE bubbles’ says Louis, beaming widely at his audience. A seasoned performer, his patter is quick and his enthusiasm infectious. He brought kids up to the front, joked with them, blew bubbles at them and ensured that every child who was brave enough to get involved received a warm round of applause. The children in the audience, when not clambering over their seats, were mostly enthralled.
Certainly, some of his tricks are impressive. My eyebrows shot up when Pearl created a square bubble, when he popped a bubble in slow motion and, my favourite trick, made a colourful bubble. Every now and then Pearl stops to impart an interesting bubble related fact to the audience. It is testament to his skill as a children’s entertainer that these brief scientific interludes were understandable and interesting.
Enjoyable as sections of the Amazing Bubble Show were the whole thing was not without glitches. The main problem with the show is that it feels rather sparse. The entertaining tricks, as good as they are, do not occur as regularly as one hopes. The setting is uninspiring. Pearl stands on stage surrounded by his equipment, no attempt was made to manipulate either lighting or sound to create a more exciting atmosphere. Furthermore, some of Pearl’s tricks go no further than blowing really big bubbles, which had an irritating habit of popping before he could work with them. This detracted somewhat from his demeanour of the bubble master.
The kids, despite some sections of apathy, seemed to enjoy the show, and a good crowd carried on standing at the front while Louis Pearl stood on stage, forever blowing bubbles.
