DELUXE DELUXE
Pacific Crystal Palace, Hamilton
20/02/2019 - 24/02/2019
Hamilton Gardens Arts Festival 2019
Production Details
A circus-cabaret of eye-opening, cheeky and double deluxe talent!
Deluxe Deluxe is set to enthral and delight this year at the decadent Pacific Crystal Palace.
In a New Zealand Premiere, brought exclusively to Hamilton audiences by the acclaimed Strut & Fret Production House, the creative minds behind Madonna’s recent Rebel Heart tour, whose spectacular shows have been delighting audiences from Sydney Opera House to London’s West End.
Don’t miss this sexy, saucy and seductive new show featuring the glitterati of international circus and cabaret talent, and starring the formidable Scot Nery (Tonight Show, HBO Comedy Festival). This adults-only night out will be the hottest ticket in Hamilton this summer, so deluxe, we had to say it twice!
“…a cheeky, vaudeville-inspired variety spectacular with lashings of Strut & Fret’s signature sass…” – Gold Coast Bulletin
“…a barrel of laughs and an eclectic array of talent…” – Blank GC
Pacific Crystal Palace
Wednesday 20 & Thursday 21 February 2019, 8.30pm
Friday 22, Saturday 23 & Sunday 24 February 2019, 6pm & 8.30pm
$70 General Admission
$65 Concession
*Booking fees apply
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Theatre , Circus , Cabaret ,
Simply (not so) pure entertainment
Review by Cate Prestidge 21st Feb 2019
It’s opening night at the Hamilton Gardens Arts Festival (huzzah!) and time for the NZ premiere of headline show, Deluxe Deluxe. Brought to us by Strut and Fret Production House (Australia), they bring a big rep with a creative catalogue that includes performances in Madonna’s ‘Rebel Heart’ tour and multiple shows and collaborations with international performers over the past 20 years. Anticipation is high for a night of comedy, cabaret and acrobatic skill.
The venue, a Spiegeltent called The Pacific Crystal Palace, is a fantastic setting for this show. Meaning ‘Mirror Tent’ in Dutch, it’s a large temporary venue and with its velvet booths, curtains, stained glass and wooden floors, it evokes an old style charm.
Our host, Scot Nery, comes from a US comedy background and is adroit in his role introducing acts, cajoling the audience and entertaining us with set pieces. The show unfolds cabaret-style with multiple acts mixing song, circus, dance, comedy and acrobatics and just the right amount of self-deprecation and cheese from the host.
The performers are all polished professionals and clearly want the audience to have fun. I particularly liked the acrobatic performers; a lively hoop spinner (Ailona) a gravity defying pole performer (Mika Bres) and a wonderful suspended hoop artist (Penelope Elena). Interspersed with clever songs (who knew you could create a whole song from just three words?) skits and visual gags featuring songstress Laura Hughes and dancer and contortionist Anthony Rodriguez, I agree with my neighbour who says at the end, “That was great, you never knew what was coming next!”
Definitely adults only, there’s more sauce than your average BBQ and the tightest buns and shortest shorts you’ll see in Hamilton this year. My suggestion is to grab a group of friends and join the fun. You could be anywhere in the world with this ‘circus-cabaret’ show: New York, Berlin, London, Shanghai… it’s simply (not so) pure entertainment.
I love the way the Hamilton Gardens transform during this annual festival with multiple shows and events on, lighting and sets reframing spaces into theatres, music and applause drifting across lawns and people out and enjoying the late summer. Get into it.
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