adult

DIVAS LONDON | London, The Prince Of Wales

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The Entertainment Providers (the team behind London’s sell-out, critically acclaimed Snow White And The Seven Merry Men in 2021 and Sinderfella in 2022) sashay back into the West End this summer, with a brand new party show, Divas London, at The Prince Of Wales Cabaret Venue (Drury Lane), for a three-week limited season.

Divas London is a brand-new, live, all-singing, all-dancing party show, celebrating the world’s greatest diva powerhouses: Whitney Houston; Aretha Franklin; Tina Turner; Cher; Celine Dion; Britney Spears; Beyoncé; Diana Ross; Amy Winehouse; Adele – all shall be represented. The show will also feature comedy tributes to the Spice Girls, Kate Bush, and – the Queen of Country – Dolly Parton.

The show will feature a top West End cast of male and female singers, emceed by a drag compère – the hilarious Simon Gross. Expect dazzling costumes and audience participation.

Ginny Lazzoni, General Manager at the Prince of Wales, says, “We are super excited for this opportunity to house this brand new party show for London, which is also perfectly in line with our new vision of the venue: we want it to be London’s number one night out. It’s a show not to miss.”

Audiences will be treated to a night of their classic diva anthems: “I Wanna Dance with Somebody”; “I’m Every Woman”; “If I Could Turn Back Time”; “Hot Stuff”; “Natural Woman”; “Material Girl”; “Think”; “Single Ladies”; “Proud Mary”; “Back to Black”; and many more.

Playing at the Prince of Wales Cabaret Venue 15 June – 2 July 2023.

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PANAMAX (2019) | Apple Podcasts

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It’s safe to say that The Prickle are massive fans of Unleash The Llama. So as you can imagine, we all got rather excited to hear they’ve brought out a brand new podcast. Only one episode up so far but it’s absolutely hilarious. Subscribe.

The deranged, epic story follows two naïve millennials: arrogant conspiracy theorist Oscar Ayers and naïve IT-technician Lowell Blair. Travelling around Panama, the pair are mistaken for drug-lords, and drawn into the brutal world of the Panamanian cartels. Recording their experience on their smartphones, the pair are plunged into a maelstrom of mistaken-identities, backstabbing and conspiracy that takes them all the way to a showdown at the Turner Prize awards ceremony.

PanaMax finds hope in the direst of situations, even if those situations are a direct consequence of one’s own ignorance. This series takes the British tradition of odd-ball character comedies that deal with social outsiders and dubious familial patronage – like Withnail and I – and combines it with the ‘caught on tape’ candour of An Idiot Abroad and the narrative drive of Narcos and Breaking Bad to deliver a sitcom that is as thematically and formally relevant as it is entertaining.

This is Unleash The Llama’s first foray into the world of audio, but it’s perfect for their outlandish, over-the-top sensibilities. The first episode isn’t even half an hour — it’s too well-edited — but it’s absolutely crammed with insanity. Subscribe.

Subscribe to PanaMax on Apple Podcasts.

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JEW…ISH | Gilded Balloon, Edinburgh Fringe 2019

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The Edinburgh Fringe is upon us! And here at Prickle HQ we could not be more excited about Unleash the Llama’s new show, a self-professed, “twisted millennial romcom that absolutely no one asked for”. This brand new two-hander sold out its London previews, and got the audience into quite a tizzy (see the video below).

JEW…ish is a pitch-black, romantic comedy about true love, politics, and two millennia of inherited trauma. TJ (Edie Newman) and Max (Saul Boyer) are in love; with amphetamines, the Palestine Liberation Organisation and ooh, Jeremy Corbyn. Occasionally even each other. There’s just one thing: Max is Jewish. TJ isn’t. He’s desperate to escape the tribe; she’s looking to sign up. What happens when you don’t identify with your identifiers, and you break out of the boxes you’re born into?

Unleash the Llama was founded in 2014 by Saul Boyer and Sam Rayner, with the goal of creating unique and ambitious comedy productions. Unleash the Llama were responsible for the hit 2014 Underbelly show Nougat for Kings (“hard to take your eyes off” – The Scotsman), the irreverent narrative comedy podcast: ‘PanaMax’ and the sketch show TüManz 2k18 which premiered at London’s Leicester Square Theatre in January 2018.

For JEW…ish, Boyer teams up again with Poppy Damon, having won awards for their writing together (Shortlisted for The RSC/Other Prize, Papatango, Cannes Series ‘In Development’ Award), with Kennedy Bloomer directing and Zoe Weldon producing.

Playing 1:30pm at the Gilded Balloon until 26 August 2019.

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LITTLE ECHOES | London, The Hope Theatre

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Published this year by Methuen Drama, Tom Powell’s Little Echoes now receives a full run at The Hope Theatre in Islington. Three haunting monologues interweave amid lightbulbs and microphones in this 90-minute exploration of London “as you’ve never seen it before”.

16-year old Danielle (Maisie Preston) meets danger in the VIP area of a pop concert. Professional relationship manager June (Ciara Pouncet) seems cool and collected, but all is not as it seems. Shaj (Mikhael DeVille) navigates feelings of intense anger and hatred in the wake of a violent acid attack on his young brother.

One of the UK’s most up and coming new playwrights, Tom Powell won the OTR National Radio Drama Award and the Footlights’ Harry Porter Prize. He is part of the Soho Writers Alumni Group and in 2015 he was shortlisted for the Soho Young Writers’ Award for his first play the bear hunt. This year he attended the Royal Court Introductory Group and was shortlisted for HighTide’s First Commissions programme. His third play White Light has recently been selected for the Arcola’s PlayWrought festival.

The production is directed by Stephen Bailey, and partnered with Beyond The Streets, a charity that works to create pathways out of sexual exploitation.

Little Echoes is playing until 9 March 2019.

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COMPANY | Hong Kong, Sha Tin Town Hall

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Sondheim’s groundbreaking 1970 musical comedy is coming to Hong Kong in a brand new Cantonese translation by Jacob Yu and Wong Ming Lok. The musical revolves around Bobby, a single man who is unable to commit fully to a steady relationship — let alone marriage. The five married couples who are his best friends, and his three girlfriends, all come together in a celebration for Bobby’s 35th birthday.

As well as the main translator, Jacob Yu also directs and produces, and set designs too. Stoa Lau is the Music Director and Sound Designer, with lighting by Ivan Chen and costumes by Shybil Yuen, in addition to choreography by Nikki Ng. The cast includes: Amanda Lee, Peco Chui, Andrew Cheung, Beilosi Fung, Margaret Cheung, Sung Boon Ho, Lan Chun Chun, Tunes Ting, SiuLung Wong, Joanna Ko, Billy Yip, Vivian Chan, Tony Li, Terrence Leung.

The original Broadway production was nominated for a record-setting fourteen Tony Awards, and won Best Musical. Many of the songs have passed into musical theatre legend, including: “Being Alive”; “Side By Side” and “You Could Drive A Person Crazy”. The current gender-flipped production in London’s West End is also nominated for many awards.

Don’t miss the chance to experience this hilarious, punchy musical about love and relationships in Cantonese.

Book online at Urbtix until 24 February 2019. Check out Theatre Space’s Facebook page for more information.

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DITA VON TEESE | Monaco, Opéra Garnier

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46-year-old Dita Von Teese is the Queen of Burlesque; a household name known for the epitome of glamour and voluptuousness.

The American icon is currently touring internationally, hitting up such iconic venues as the sumptuously decorated Opéra Garnier of the Monte Carlo casino in Monaco, and the London Palladium.

Although known as a pioneer of Neo-Burlesque in the 1990s, Von Teese’s routines are highly influenced by the glamour of the 1930s and 1940s, including her showstopping signature act, featuring Von Teese bathing and splashing in a giant martini glass.

Performing alongside Dita (with her astonishing array of couture) are other bright stars from the world of Burlesque, including some seductive boylesque performers, guaranteeing pleasure for everyone.

Dita Von Teese is performing in Monaco for one night only, on 20 October 2018.

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