Cabaret artists Jack Woodhead and Mark Wartenberg are partners on stage and in life: living and writing together in Berlin, they once again bring their cabaret show to an eager London audience.

British-born Woodhead reassures the intimate crowd gathered at London’s Brasserie Zédel that he is “very famous” in Berlin (where he was a resident artist at the world-renowned Wintergarten theatre). He performs at the piano in his inimitably wide-eyed manner, that’s somewhere between Liza Minelli in Cabaret (1970) and the serpent that tempted Eve. His songs (including “I’m tired of being gay” and “Doris the spider”) are witty, carefully crafted, and delivered with such perfect diction that we enjoy every word. Woodhead also enjoys speaking directly to the crowd about his dalliances in Berlin sex clubs, and having his over-sized dildos held up at Berlin airport security.

Berlin-born Wartenberg kicks the show up a notch by bringing the weird. Singing in English, French, and German (with no subtitles), Wartenberg’s persona on stage is a complete enigma compared with the open-book Woodhead: he never addresses us directly, and is summoned on and off the stage, each time wearing a different outfit. At times, it’s funny, like when the duo sing “Somethin’ Stupid” to each other, but rather than say “I love you”, can only yell, scream, and vomit. Other times, it’s deeply disconcerting, like a monologue of desperate neediness delivered direct to the audience with his trousers partly down, revealing his pubis; or when he unexpectedly starts screaming at the audience in German.

It’s a fabulous double-act, and we are so lucky to get to see these bilingual artistes live on stage in London. At the finale, the pair threaten a “Christmas” show; God knows what that will be like.

Reviewed at Crazy Coqs, 27 June 2024.