Review-The Christmas Extravaganza-Vixens Burlesque
7-12-12
By: Harry Oram
If you haven’t been to “Bisous” in the LKF Tower, well done for not being corrupted by all that the LKF scene has to offer. But it is now the Christmas season and on this occasion, I dare you to take a walk on the wild side, embrace your naughty side out and go see The Vixens’ Christmas Extravaganza.
Surtitled “Fifty Shades of Red and Green”, the title hints at the raunchiness the show intends to bring. But I warn those who go, this is an extremely naughty show. I am not sure who the target audience is. It is definitely not for the faint of heart, for The Vixens will shock you with their boldness, their sexuality, jokes about religion, the Middle East and language that even made me blush and say to my neighbour, “wow, did they just say that?” But, ladies and gents, that is exactly what a Burlesque show is supposed to do: entertain us through song and dance and ridicule us with caricature.
Having seen The Vixens perform their showcase before at “Varga Lounge”, I had remarked that it would be good to see what they can do given a proper venue, with a stage and lights and more choreography. They did not disappoint. I was extremely impressed with clearly how much work they have put in since I saw them last. The costumes are fantastic and I applaud Jennifer Fong, the Costume Designer. But one thing I really did enjoy seeing was, unlike their showcase, which was a series of numbers, this piece (written by Meaghan McGurgan and directed by David Tobin) ties all the dances together with a story.
“Candy” is an overworked Hong Kong girl, oppressed by her boss (Baron Von Munchoften) who wants her to work overtime on Christmas Eve. With Christmas Spirit at an all time low, three “Christmas Fairies” swoop in to attempt to save the day. With Santa too inebriated and too perverted to help, the fairies do battle with Munchoften’s three sexual slaves, “The Ba-Hum-Bugs”, in order to restore Christmas spirit.
I enjoyed the HK tailored jokes and “Pussy Galore” is enjoyable as the lost and bewildered Candy. Between “Chrismas Baby” popping out of a giant present, “Santa” falling down the chimney, and the “Ba-Hum-Bugs” entering the stage like three dogs with leashes being taken for a walk, it is compelling watching as you wonder what The Vixens will do next.
The show is presented by two disturbingly sexual Elves (Chuck Fuzzynuts and Maximus Brock) who also warm the audience up with their pre-show. I like how this Christmas Extravaganza gets the Vixens into the audience to encourage participation. “Bisous” is a wonderful venue for them; however, the seating arrangement may make it difficult for those in the back to see the stage. There is a zone labelled “audience participation”, where I encourage the naughtiest of you to go. However, shows like this are heavily reliant on audience interaction and I think the show will benefit from a larger audience who aren’t shy and are more vocal. Though already bold, I think The Vixens will get even more daring with the right encouragement.
I would have liked the pre-show to be trimmed down a little and the pacing overall to pick up. There were also a few technical difficulties with microphones not working, which cut a few lines off a few numbers, something I’m sure will be fixed by the next performance. A real shame though, as overall the singing is really fantastic with the stand-out singer for me being “C.C.Frost's All I Want for Christmas is You.
Other highlights for me were the three “Christmas Fairies” who looked fantastic in their Christmas corsets; “Baron Von Munchoften” gives an extremely committed performance as the evil boss; “Byron Mojo” takes boldness to a whole new level as he strips as Santa, and I liked that he remains on stage during the interval to allow audience members to go sit on his lap and ask him for his present. (Yes he only has one kind of present. Don’t worry it’s not that, just a pack of condoms.) I was pleased to see the inclusion of the Magic-Mike-esque-Reindeer for the females in the audience. I did overhear one lady in the audience comment that she wanted to see more male dances. The “X-Mas Factor” dance-off was a very amusing way to throw in some quick numbers. How can any 2012 show be complete without including a quick tribute to ”Gangnam Style”?
It is all for a good cause, The Vixens aim to raise $15,000 to build a school in Burma. The girls go round pre-show and during the interval selling raffle tickets with generous prizes of wine, champagne, a playboy watch and pole-dancing classes, and they even auctioned off one of their reindeer.
If you are a fan of The Vixens you will love it. For those who are sensitive, the content may be a bit too shocking. Nevertheless it is harmless fun and the hard-working courageousness of The Vixens is clearly evident. For those of you who do brave the show, you will definitely be rewarded with a memorable night. With the substantial improvement from their showcase, The Vixens are going from strength to strength and I look forward to seeing their next show in the Spring.
The Christmas Extravaganza is playing through Saturday at Bisous. Tickets can be purchased at the door. For more information please click here.
Comments
Mike
I went to the show because of HK Magazine. My girlfriend and I loved it! So funny and smart. I might go again. Highly recommend it!
07 December 2012Anne
One of the best shows I've seen all year! Congrats to the cast and crew!
07 December 2012Tobias
I agree completely. I thought the show was great and I'm sure it will be even better tonight. Well done Vixens!
07 December 2012
Cathy
Fantastic show. Worthy cause. Well worth the money. The girl who sang the last number has a beautiful voice. Overall, it was better than some of the shows at HK Art Fest last year that we paid twice as much for. Can't wait to see the spring show. Glad we saw it in the paper!
07 December 2012Irish Rose
I'm not just saying this because my friend David directed this. It's a really good show. It's like panto for adults. Very well written and the costumes are amazing!
07 December 2012Michelle
It was an absolutely fantastic performance! Didn't have much expectation at first cuz I'd never heard of the vixens before. Looking forward to more shows by the vixens in the future :)
07 December 2012Yuki
The script is what makes the show so good. The political satire and incredibly intelligent humour in the story are well crafted. I couldn't believe they worked Nationalized Education and CY Leung into the story!
07 December 2012theatre_fan
A good first opening night with a very funny script but the mic issues need to be addressed. (More like a venue issue but it seriously affects our enjoyment...)
07 December 2012Anot
Some serious talent in this but the pre show and dragged out raffle, I could have done without. Technical issues occurred but I wouldnt have noticed if the actors hadn't pointed them out on stage. Over all, brilliant performance. Definitely worth a look
07 December 2012Hanzo
Christmas spirit wrapped up in a sexy bow
07 December 2012Jose
Great show with full of surprises. Good in dance and voice during all the night, of course the funny scripts as well! I eager to see their next show soon!
08 December 2012julie
Amazing show. Especially the writing. So funny. Definately a must see!
08 December 2012Boy
Saw last Spring's show as well. This one was a lot stronger. I liked it better. I thought the narrators weren't as strong this time but that overall the story line was much more clever. The singing made the show a better package, overall.
08 December 2012
Get your tickets for tonight! Can't get a better deal in town and it all goes to a good cause.Nick Milnes
I thought Baby It's Cold Outside was the standout performance. And that chick who sang it can dance too!
08 December 2012Jade
Loved the show. Can't say enough nice things about it. Going back tonight to see it again.
08 December 2012Michael
Meaghan McGurgan is one of the best writers we have in town for comedy. You do a good job of running this blog. But you are an outstanding comedy writer! Can't wait to see the next one.
08 December 2012George Chen
The fairies were good dancers and very sexy.
09 December 2012Mui
I liked the show very much. Go Lynzy!
09 December 2012George Chen
Spammers need to rot in hell.
09 December 2012