I had read the blurb about this performance on the Fringe website, and have personally seen a number of Aerial Manx’s performances in the past, so I was excited to see his first solo show. Unfortunately, quite unlike the theatrical and high spirited shows that I’ve enjoyed previously, I was faced with what Aerial himself decrees a ‘meditative circus’. Set in the cosy and dimly lit Gluttony Carry On Theatre, it should have been clear what to expect the second that I noticed the incense and the psy-trance (which was immediately).

Aerial performs a number of incredible feats, whether it’s putting out a blow torch with his tongue or doing a cartwheel back flip while swallowing a sword. His circus trick repertoire is certainly impressive, and at times mesmerizing. However, the hour-long performance is more about Aerial’s commentary on spirituality than anything else. Audience members are forced to sit through long monotonous interludes between tricks while Aerial delivers a well practiced, yet incredibly self indulgent spiel about his many “beautiful” life experiences and views on humanity. He also refers to a number of ancient religious and spiritual practices throughout the performance, including those of the Shaolin Monks, Japanese Samurai, Native Americans and mostly, the Fakir.  While some of this information is interesting, one is left feeling more like they’re sitting in a classroom or at a spirituality conference than attending a performance simply for the joy of it. It was a rare moment that Aerial let his performance speak for itself, but when they occurred he genuinely did some amazing stunts.

Aerial made of a couple of attempts at audience participation, both of which looked uncomfortable and forced for the participant. Throughout the performance, it was as if Aerial had to instruct audience members when and when not to clap, laugh or cheer, which led to a very tense dynamic. Audience members who did not laugh at one particularly crude joke were dismissed as a “conservative catholic crowd” and upon realising that few individuals in the crowd had experience with reiki, Aerial asserted that there were “no open minded people in the audience”. As somebody who is open to alternative views, this struck me as somewhat narrow minded and counter-intuitive to the atmosphere that Aerial was trying to create. Contradictory moments such as these occurred occasionally throughout the performance, particularly when Aerial discussed “throwing away the script” in life, having just delivered one of the most scripted and rehearsed hour long public speeches that I’ve seen in a long time. The performance may not have been so tense had Aerial been more genuine and raw in his delivery.

Aerial may be a seriously multi-talented man, and from what I hear multiple world record holder, but if you’re after some excitement you would be better served seeing one of his street performances or collaborations. However, if you have a strong interest in meditative trance and would like to watch Aerial Manx do yoga on stage, then you will enjoy this performance. The ABC will be at Aerial’s performance on the 18th of March to document his sword swallowing, so if you are considering attending then I’m sure he’d appreciate it if the seats were filled.

Any parent heading to see Who’s Your Daddy: The Funny Side of Fatherhood, will be excited to see that somebody is finally saying what we’ve all been thinking for years. For those viewers yet to fall into the parenting trap, it should provide some startling (and probably quietly terrifying) insight into the future ahead. UK’s Terry North, Melbourne’s JJ McLean, Brisbane’s Pete Melrose and USA’s Mr. Alabama have teamed up to deliver the honest, raw and probably slightly offensive truth about what it means to be a parent. And, with 13 children and 11 grandchildren between them, I would say that they’re more than qualified. These guys aren’t afraid to tell the truth, whether it’s Mr. Alabama’s concerns that his son is going to turn out gay or JJ McLean admitting that he only now realises why his own father drank so much. There’s a lot of ground to be covered in this 60 minute show, and each performer has his own story to tell. Obviously well practiced, the comedy team manages to deliver a downright hilarious insight into family life and the struggle to maintain one’s self identity in the face of children’s toys, interrupted bathroom breaks and a dwindling sex life.

These guys did the best that they could in a bad situation on the night. Having been sold out the previous evening, it was disappointing to be seated in an essentially empty venue in a crowd of 10. Despite what must have been very disheartening, each performer still put in their best efforts and delivered a highly energetic performance. While there were few audience members available, all performers attempted to engage the audience the best that they could and those of us who were present tried hard to give as much back as we could. I have no doubts about their material, and thoroughly enjoyed what they had to say, however I also believe that it would be a much more lively and interactive show had the seats been packed. Held at the Quality Hotel Old Adelaide on O’Connell Street, North Adelaide, organizers of the performance would perhaps be better served choosing a venue close to the Garden of Unearthly Delights in the future.

This all said, I did have a chance to have a beer with Terry, JJ and Mr. Alabama after the show. Pete went to bed – probably just excited to have a minute to himself! They’re a great group of guys, and comedy is clearly what they love to do. They were a riot to hang out with, and judging by the way that they interact on and off stage, they’re clearly all great friends as well. As I mentioned on the evening, I would love to have the chance to see their show again on a night when more seats are filled and they have a better opportunity to showcase their talents.

A friend of mine mentioned earlier in the week that Cantina was the best show that she’d ever seen, and I’m inclined to agree. It’s no wonder the show won Best Overall Production and the Innovation Award at last year’s Fringe. Every tiny detail of the performance was so beautifully polished and put together that I would be surprised to hear a review state otherwise. Held in the Vagabond at the Garden of Unearthly Delights, audience members were packed together like sardines just to get a glimpse of the stage as men in bow ties aggressively demanded that we sit closer together in an attempt to fit even more people into the already full venue. On the evening of a 37 degree day, this was less than desirable, although it’s the only fault that I can find in this otherwise stunning performance.

Premiering at the 2010 Brisbane Festival, Cantina is a dark, glamorous and erotic circus cabaret show that will push your perceptions of beauty and intimacy and leave you on the edge of your seat. Stunning costumes with a vintage Parisian burlesque feel complement the even more beautiful bodies of the performers as they perform feats that certainly push the line between pleasure and pain. This is complemented by charming live music throughout, whether it’s the manic musings of the pianola and music box, or Nara Demasson’s whimsical ukulele, guitar and vocal solos.

Tense and dramatic from the onset, the show opens as Chelsea McGuffin astonishes audience members by doing the splits on the tightrope, while wearing high heels.  Contortionist Henna Kaikula performs a ‘rag doll’ act, punctuated by live sound effects that leave the audience fascinated and horrified at the same time. Mozes performs unbelievable gravity defying stunts on a rope hanging from the ceiling, whilst blinded by a hood covering his face, before swinging violently around the room by his neck. These dangerous stunts are often so calculated and tense that one finds themselves forgetting to breathe properly. However, the on-edge moments are juxtaposed with ones of incredible joy amongst the performers as they dance and sing together, and encourage one another’s genius. A sense of comedy is present throughout the performance as female performers light heartedly struggle to maintain their dignity whilst performing acrobatics in skirts and bloomers. Even more worthy of mention is the moment of full frontal male nudity that may dissuade less adventurous Fringe enthusiasts, but please don’t let it. These individual feats are interspersed with collaborations by different performers, whether it’s a heated fight, an erotic display or a dance between two lovers.

Despite hefty ticket prices (about $50) and the overcrowded venue, there is little to deter Adelaide Fringe goers from this amazing show. The performers are all highly professional and did not fail to deliver at any point throughout the evening, which I doubt to be an isolated occurrence. I would highly recommend Cantina to everyone, even those who sit on the conservative side. The eloquence with which the cast perform their erotic manoeuvres, violent expression and even the full frontal nudity is so perfect that it may be enough to change your preconceptions.

To any passerby at the Garden of Unearthly Delights on Sunday night, it would have been clear that something quite spectacular was going on. With seven foot Drag Queens casually drinking by the bar and sequins as far as the eye could see, the stars of DragOrama created an atmosphere rife with glamour and intrigue before the show even began. In the 15 minutes leading up to the big event, the line outside the Idolize Spiegeltent had almost quadrupled in size. I wouldn’t be surprised if this was in part to do with those last minute buyers, fascinated by the atmosphere and eager to get involved in whatever was going on.

An experience in itself, the Idolize Spiegeltent was the perfect venue for this over the top celebration of individuality and style. A long time spent in the line up gave the audience a chance to appreciate the truly dramatic nature of the venue, with ornate carvings and baroque style paintings, complete with gilded frames, surrounding the exterior of the tent. Internally, ornate decorated mirrors and embroidered deep green and red drapes exhume the grandeur fit for this talented group of drag stars.

The seats were packed by an incredibly diverse audience within minutes and it wasn’t long before we were introduced to one of our hosts for the evening, the highly acclaimed and definitely fabulous Shimmer Chernobyl. Shimmer opened the show with a highly appropriate rendition of Here I Am (by Natalie Gauci) and continued throughout the night to introduce and complement her drag babies. We would later be introduced to our other compere Malt Biscuit. With her dry, provocative and often self deprecating humour, Malt provided a stunning and hilarious contrast to the highly energetic and flamboyant nature of the remainder of the performance.

Returning to donate their talent for this Feast Festival fundraiser was an array of our own Adelaide Drag Queens, including Cherry Poppins, Desiree, Luci Furr, Marie Claire, Mercedes Benz, Cleo Cosmopolitan, Judy G Spot, Raven, Misty Munday, Victoria Square, Ali Holic, Helga Handful, Izzie Good, Rouge, Dixie Ryder, Selena, Tina Peechez, Bailey St Cream, Princess Laya, Miss Choo, Rita Demore’e, Brenda Baklava, Scarlett Snatch and Loz Vegas. Each of these very well primped and practiced Queens were strikingly different in their appearance and performances, while still conveying one very strong message as far as this reviewer is concerned – This is who we are, and we are fucking fantastic. And they were.

Each performer had a unique style, whether it was Marie Claire performing Shirley Temple’s On the Good Ship Lollipop (which was actually quite disturbing), or Misty Munday performing a parody on the song Hey Micky, retitled Hey Jesus. It wasn’t uncommon to see audience members dancing out of their seats, particularly when being entertained by the more engaging members of the cast, namely Luci Furr, who stole the show. That said, everyone involved was fantastic on the night and there was rarely a dull moment. Special mention should also go to the one and only Drag King of the night, Mark Fitzpatrick. Mark delivered a fantastic rendition of Don’t Worry, Be Happy (by Guy Sebastian) and blew my preconceptions about gender out of the water. The show finished with a with a collaboration by Malt Biscuit and the too beautiful Princess Laya performing Who Knew (by Pink) with help from some very attractive men. That said, I don’t think they were completely necessary additions, as Malt Biscuit would have had more than enough stage presence standing all on her own. In the dark.

The unfortunate aspect of this performance, which I can’t help but mention, was the fact that the show went 60 minutes over the advertised time of 90 minutes. Having started the show at about 10pm, the previously enthusiastic audience grew weary towards the end. By the 100 minute mark half of the seats had cleared out and it was a relief when the show finally finished at 12:30am. In the future, I think the organizers of DragOrama would be well served to manage their stage time more appropriately, and perhaps cut down on repeat performances. It was simply disappointing to see the life of the show dwindle, and one felt sorry for those performers who hadn’t had the opportunity to showcase their talents early on in the performance, and got very limited attention from a tired audience. However, after all is said and done, the DragOrama performers put on a highly joyful show and I will definitely go again next year if the opportunity strikes – I’ll just know to take in a second bottle of wine, in case of over-time.