REVIEW: WHERE THE BOYS ARE

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It’s been quite a while since I last truly enjoyed an evening at Cape Town’s On Broadway. Unfortunately some of the shows staged there, during the past few months, have left a lot to be desired. However the current production refreshingly rectifies this venue’s recent and somewhat disappointing track record.

Thankfully, Where The Boys Are is a thoroughly delightful musical entertainment!

The three stars of the show, Alistair Izobell, Loukmaan Adams and Mono Dullisear are extremely talented and exuberantly vibrant performers. Well-balanced ensemble work and showcased solo slots claim avid audience attention throughout this diverse programme of hysterically humorous anecdotes and impressively harmonious musicality.

The media-blurb describes the show as “an outrageously funny look at relationships with a species that can only hail from Venus…it’s about life with the opposite sex”. Presumably such phrases are intended as confirmation of the heterosexual nature of this particular presentation? However, in actuality, the piece contains a great deal of almost contradictory ‘camp’ comedy. Of course Capetonian ’clora’ humour is renowned for a certain over-the-top ‘campness’ that seems to delight even the straightest of audiences!

One of the evening’s unexpected surprises came in the form of Alistair Izobell’s public admission to being “a moffie married to a woman!” and during the company’s excellent rendition of Queen of Hearts, Mr. Izobell unquestionably convinced the audience of his mercurial sexual orientation! This vocally superb performer has a charismatic stage presence and his stylish interpretation of Nat King Cole’s Orange Coloured Sky was one of the show’s many unforgettable highlights.

Handsome Loukmaan Adams possesses undeniable sex appeal. He likewise owns a velvety singing voice with which he effectively charmed his listeners, especially in the poignant rendition of David Kramer and Taliep Petersen’s beautiful composition Zurayda.

Rubber-faced Mono Dullisear had the audience in stitches throughout the show. With an irresistibly engaging persona and applaudable comic timing, Dullisear won the hearts of almost everyone in the room. He also coped admirably with the only technical hitch to occur during the performance, when his body-mike failed towards the end of the programme, and with admirable professionalism he delivered a moving rendition of What About Feelings.

The three singers are efficiently backed by the gifted musicianship of Camillo Lombard, Don Vino Prins, Jonathan Rubein and Willfred Cornellison and this attractive theatrical package has been slickly directed by Basil Appollis.

I heartily recommend Where The Boys Are.

Where The Boys Are runs at On Broadway, 88 Shortmarket Street, Cape Town until Octiber 11. For bookings call 021-424 1194 or go to www.onbroadway.co.za.

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