Stunning Selections at the September Matinee

The house was packed, the lights were dimmed, the DJ warmed up his mic setting the stage for yet another action packed Matinee at Elysium Cabaret. SL seemed to play nice as the afternoon kicked off, leaving most in peace to enjoy the smorgasbord of dance presented by the talented choreographers. Without further ado, here comes the review for the first Fall matinee.

Eva
Sound of Silence by Epic Rock

The first to grace our stage was the beautiful Eva with her routine stunning the audience with a simple, changing backdrop that made use of highly effective graphics to accompany the bittersweet melody. Joining Eva were Misha Selene, Nadi, Tauriel, Cowgrl, Si De Brit and Zach Starostin who danced their way through several astounding astounding costume changes, leaving even myself wondering how she did it. A breathtaking routine for not only the use of choeography, sets and costuming but -more importantly- for the message she portrayed.

Jilley
Physical by Olivia Newton-John

In every show there is always someone hollering out for the hunky men doing their thing on stage. Today, Jilley had the audience bellowing entirely different things as she set the over-padded Paul and Andy to work on those dastardly treadmills. Showing off her svelte figure in a tight workout wear, the talented lady put them through their paces with sit ups and push ups until the boys dropped all their excess pounds. The word was restored to its natural order, with hunky men back in their rightful place in this fun fitness number.

Arabella
White Rabbit by Jefferson Airplane

The opening of the next act was extremely creative with Arabella taking us straight down the rabbit hole. This quirky song was embodied by an equally off kilter set inspired by Alice in Wonderland. There was even a disappearing Cheshire cat! Aspen Wrigglesworth, Halfpint Raymaker, Imrhien Porthos, Fukuju Amaterasu and Keesha Lenroy were the lovely ladies joining the cute little white rabbit. She was definitely not late for any important date with her split-sequenced choreography, showcasing her talents to perfection.

Diddy – Kittens ‘n’ Tigers
Umbrella by Casey Abrams

The moment this talented group began tapping their way about, all I could say over and over to anyone who would listen was how fabulous the mover work was. Choreographer Diddy should get serious props for his smooth movements and clever combinations that would have put any Broadway professional to shame. Joining him was Bubble Roffo, Mandy Oconnell, TanyaSmart, Rayzza Rubble and Andytez Dumpling in snappy suits and clear raincoats. Umbrellas never got in the way, held steady regardless of the animation on this blue-hued stage. A fun routine that proved any show with a good dance break and tap shoes will always be a crowd pleaser.

Shayna
Cosmic Love by Florence and the Machine

The moment the curtain opened, we were transported to another galaxy filled with shooting stars and brightly hued clouds. Oodles joined the lovely Shayna for her beautiful creation which blended particle effects, lighted costumes and seamless choreography. Two lovers started apart, separated by the yawning depths of outer-space. Soon not even that proved enough to keep them from one another, as they melted into one another’s arms to complete their journey with intricate couples animations.

Wiz
Evolution Mix by Wiz

This was just fun fun fun! In his usual unique and creative way, Wiz too us all on a journey through the evolution of dance. I could list all the songs but I am not sure my memory is up to the task and I truly applaud his collection of famous dances. Suffice it to say there was jumping, jiving, horse riding, pelvic grinds, bad romances to name but a few. I don’t know about anyone else, but I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see which song would make an appearance next and just barely refrained from doing the iconic steps right along with him!

Klark Harvy
Mash: Superman/Can’t Stop the Feeling by Justin Timberlake

Klark Harvy. The name itself is enough to let anyone know they will be in for a treat of lighting and particle wonders. Featuring Si De Brit, Zach, Diamonte Tomas and Sendar, this lineup of limber men in their white suits danced their night away beneath multi-color laser lights mirrored by wall panels. Smooth transitions and orginal animation selection reigned supreme in this fun and lighthearted routine. I hope he doesn’t kill me for saying this, but one of the real highlights of this performance for me was the pre-show. Using particles and effects perfectly timed to dramatic music, Klark managed to create performance art that held a real ‘Wow’ factor … and this was before the curtain even rose on his routine!

Maia Von Phoenix
Push It by Salt-N-Pepa

Yo yo yo yo, Maia was in the house today, or should I say supermarket filled with less than desirable clientele portrayed by Seb, Ayita, Jo, Paul and Max. One of the funnest parts of this were the two guys misbehaving with a trolley, rolling up and down the store appearing to cart-surf. This didn’t phase the girls, or the check out chick -err guy- who kept up their hip hop moves which matched the music perfectly. Hopefully no damage was done, or displays sent toppling to the ground, in the making of this number.

Babypea Von Phoenix
Cover Girl (Put The Bass In Your Walk) by RuPaul

So my SL had died on me by this point, so a few creatures were missing in the video. Luckily, Fuku and Oodles saved the day by also providing some pictures of this unconventional fashion parade. Pea headed this lineup of beauty queens of Jilley, Mona, Kyshra, Fuki, Amy and Immy in this  left of the center routine. The costumes were awesomely cool and unique, had me peering closer to work out exactly what these things were. They boogied their way up, down, backwards, forwards, across and back the changing stage like the true models they were leaving the audience in fits of giggles as we often are after a peek into the squishy Pea’s mind.

That was it for this month’s matinee, but we all know that the fun never stops for long at Elysium Cabaret. These guys and many more of your favorite choreographers will be back on Friday, September 30 at 6pm SLT with all new creations for your eyes to feast upon. Of course, please also join us for our next matinee on Saturday, October 29 at 1pm SLT.