Presented byVyom Sharma
@ Gluttony – Carry On
THURSDAY 15th March (until March 18)

It’s hard to put Vyom Sharma’s Seven Stories into a box. However, if forced to try, I’d say it’s divided roughly equal amounts between theatre, comedy and magic show.When you mentally put those things together, one probably gets visions of red curtains, top hats, spangled jackets and scantily clad women hovering about as doves appear from handkerchiefs. This image couldn’t be further from what the show really is; raw, intimate and entertaining.

The performance takes place in Gluttony’s Carry On tent. The way in which the stage is set up is vaguely sinister in a classic ‘Sword in the Stone’ kind of way – a line of old books at the front, an empty table, and a hatstand with a dream-catcher dangling from it. This strongly contrasts the persona of Sharma himself – he is energetic, enthusiastic and has a contagious smile.

The show itself consists of, as promised, seven stories. It begins with Sharma ‘rehearsing’ for the show – reading from a textbook of magic which he will later use in his final story. He makes fun of himself, invites audience participation, and delivers a deliberately awkward and fumbling first trick – making the moment when he demonstrates his true talent at magic all the more amazing.

This isn’t a magic show with story-time in-between tricks. Instead, Sharma delivers a host of different experiences and tales, and uses very elegant magic in order to augment and underscore these. There are tales about first love, about the loss of wonder, and even about murder – made all the more memorable when at an unexpected moment, Sharma makes the impossible appear real through sleight of hand and trickery.

He also delivers some killer one-liners.

Unfortunately, the night I attended was the one following the strong rains Adelaide experienced on Wednesday. Marshy lawns and mild flooding resulted in the cancellation of many shows the previous night, and it seemed, one day later, people were equally not keen to venture out into potential mud. As a result, the audience for this particular show was made up of about eight people. This had both good and bad aspects however.

From the beginning, Sharma engaged well with the audience – speaking to people individually, and addressing us all in a familiar and friendly fashion. It broke down a lot of the performer/audience barrier, and as a result made the show seem a lot more accessible; fitting in well with the story-telling style of the performance. It seemed no member of the audience was left out. When near the end of the performance his video equipment didn’t work, as such a small group we were invited on stage to watch his final, mind-bending card tricks up close.

Despite the benefits of being in a small group, I believe that the show would be better with a large audience. It’s a performance which relies on participation and engagement in order to succeed. People feel less inclined to join in if they make up a large percentage of the audience; they get self conscious. Sharma has a personality and style which, with a bigger crowd, I think would only shine more.

This show was an unusual mix, and, at least for me, unlike anything I had seen before. Magic. Comedy. Theatre. Strange tales. Con artistry. Disguises. Pseudonyms. Take a chance on Seven Stories.