VIEWPOINTS – Variety shows with a twist: XIVARIÉTÉ and Thisispopbaby’s RIOT

In the early 20th century, variety shows – particularly vaudeville – were staples of American stage entertainment. Over time, vaudeville took a back seat to make way for more “sophisticated” forms of theater to take the spotlight, most notably the fully integrated musical. As with other things in this life (e.g., certain fashion trends), this outmoded form of live entertainment has started to come back in vogue – but with a twist.

Company XIV's "XIVariété"

Company XIV’s “XIVariété”

I’ve been following Company XIV for a number of years now. Led by artistic director Austin McCormick with his unmistakable brand of aesthetics – think baroque meets S&M (!) – the company headily, if sometimes disjointedly, combines burlesque, circus arts, dance, and music (both of the operatic/classical and pop varieties) acts to recast stories we all thought we knew. These stories include The Nutcracker, Cinderella, to name a few. I’ve always felt that Mr. McCormick should try just doing away with these flimsily applied plots altogether and bring his company’s breathtaking skills to the fore, and that’s exactly what he’s done with his latest offering, XIVariété (RECOMMENDED). I’m happy to report that this approach works beautifully. Indeed, this latest show finds the company as seductive as ever, and I’m happy to see the once nomadic company thriving in their new permanent home in Bushwick. Now that the search for a home base is over, I’d like to see the gorgeous and insanely talented folks at Company XIV take it to the next level by expanding its repertoire of acts and broadening its already intoxicating aesthetics.

Thisispopbaby's "Riot" at NYU Skirball

Thisispopbaby’s “Riot” at NYU Skirball

For just a handful of performances over this holiday weekend, NYU Skirball played host to the New York stop of the world tour of Thisispopbaby’s Riot (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED). The variety show was a runaway hit at the 2016 Dublin Fringe Festival – winning Best Production – and deservedly so. Unlike XIVariété, this Irish variation has an agenda; it uses the vaudevillian format as a defiant act of political theater, protesting the current times we live in. Oddly, and irresistibly, it works. Through its offbeat, often kitschy humor, Riot celebrates the power of the nonconforming individual to take charge, make a statement, and triumph on the stage – it’s ultimately a rather potent metaphor. Led by the lovable yet tell-it-like-it-is drag queen Panti Bliss, the show is a dizzying mix of exuberant and, at initial glance, mis-matched qualities. The show is emceed by a drag queen. One set of dancers are not particularly graceful nor coordinated. Another set are middle aged. The circus acts purveyor is not the svelte figure you’d find at a Cirque du Soleil show. And so on. Yet despite these glaring incongruities, there is absolutely no question that each and every one of the company members is supremely talented.

 

RIOT
Performance
Thisispopbaby at NYU Skirball
1 hour, 40 minutes (with one intermission)
Closed

XIVARIÉTÉ
Performance
Company XIV
1 hour, 50 minutes (with two intermissions)
Through February 24

Categories: Cabaret, Dance, Music, Other Music, Theater

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