Cabaret

Who Sarah Louise Young in 'Cabaret Whore'
What Outstanding polished and confident character cabaret with Superman-quick costume changes.

Why What is usually a strangely-shaped basement club becomes a tough room to hold – all pillars, squished together seating, a tiny ‘stage’ in the corner, and a dual-sided bar attracting the attention of those standing at the back. Full credit to Sarah-Louise Young: she handles the room with rare and confident skill. The link throughout is what makes these three characters a cabaret whore. There’s trailer park trash-bag Sammy Mavis Jnr, ‘Cabaret Idol’ quarter-finalist Loretta the Librarian and an Edith Piaf-loathing French cabaret singer whose name roughly translates, she tells us, as ‘frumpy pigeon’, each given their 15 minutes (give or take) and a Superman-quick costume change. Part of the Free Fringe, the room is full to bursting and there's an electric, tangible feeling of seeing something really special. Young shouldn’t be down here, working for tips – money in the bucket at the end, or suffer the wrath of Frumpy Pigeon – but that’s part of the joke. She’s beautiful (and thin, damn it), sure, but she’s also full to bursting with character and polished talent. Her pacing is outstanding, she’s hilarious and she handles a talkative heckler with style: ‘It is not wise to talk through the show when I am holding a knife, have high blood pressure AND PMT.’ Outstanding cabaret. Simone Baird

Until Aug 30 at Espionage, 6.15pm