Cabaret
by Cougar Morrison
Deville’s Pad
January 30th
Review by Kat Gillespie

Deville’s Pad, Perth’s cult classic hell-themed nightclub, is already more than a little glittery. With the addition of Cougar Morrison, it sparkles to the point of excess.

Greeting his audience bedecked in tulle and feathers, Cougar’s immediate attempts at glitzy sass and bitterness (much of the cabaret turns on a musical recounting of his unlucky love life) are offset by the singer’s surprisingly delicate features and apparent shyness onstage.

Cougar is self-admittedly skinny and “odd looking”, and to counter this he is backed by two somewhat beefier back up dancers who make full use of the Deville’s go-go cages. His insecurities play well – much like his heroine Edith Piaf, whose trademark warble he emulates with strength, Cougar makes up for a physical diminutiveness with some very impressive pipes.

The show opens with a number from The Triplets of Belleville, and despite visual references to Beyonce and the inevitable tribute to Miley Cyrus (a touchstone for cabaret artists at Fringeworld this year), you might interpret the whole performance as an earnest tribute to the French pantomime tradition. There are certainly moments of Baptiste Deburau, if Baptiste had a penchant for Flo Rida and Wham!, and greeted his audiences with an enthusiastic “Bonsoir, bitches!”

Originating from the sequinned opulence of New Orleans, Cougar Morrison seeks to bedazzle, but maintains an intriguing undercurrent of sadness and vulnerability throughout. There is plenty of fun to be had here, yet the best moments are not comedic, but confessional.

Cougar Morrison has two remaining shows, on the nights of Friday the 6th and Saturday the 7th of February. You can find tickets via the Fringe guide here.