Live at The Soul Box – Variety Show

Apparently, Live at The Soul Box – Variety Show is a show that features “a selection of interactive cabaret, theatre games, comedians and hip swinging Jam sessions.”

What you get though, is an overrated, lengthy, amateur “cabaret” show – if you can call it that.

That might sound completely and unjustly harsh to many of you, but this was absolutely painful to sit through.

Where they go wrong to begin with is not putting enough variety in their “variety” show. Of the eight acts that featured, five of them were comedians plus if you include the show host, that makes six – and none of them funny at all, apart from one or two good jokes here and there.

It was completely self-absorbed and absolutely exclusive comedy, meaning if you weren’t a friend in the audience you didn’t get their humour. Not to mention, their hypnotist, who had the potential to be a really great act, was on stage for all of five minutes, and the show’s host Ross Voss, used the word “yep” after every second word, which made hearing it a million times over two hours, akin to nails on a blackboard.

By now you’re probably thinking, wow, totally scathing review and you’re right, but in the interest of being fair I should mention it wasn’t 100% terrible. There was a great female singer who had an amazing voice and sang some really terrific original songs, a really great mentalist, who – whilst not completely polished or original – still managed to entertain and amaze, a Jazz warm up act that was very upbeat and fun – but that’s saying something when the warm up act is better than the actual act – and The Soul Box as a venue is really great.

It’s just such as shame that this lengthy and self-absorbed act, doesn’t live up to it’s too hype.

#cabaretfringefestival #cabaretfringefestival2012 #varietyshow

– Suzanna Parisi

Originally published in DB Magazine #Issue547 (street mag no longer exists - link no longer available)