Salvation Amy
Melbourne Fringe Festival Hub - Lithuanian
Club - South Melbourne
Drawn to Salvation Amy by what is written in the publicity blurb – I was not
disappointed. It has the potential to
become a burly, bawdy, darkly funny and sating Cabaret offering. However on opening night the early parts of Amy
Bodossian’s performance lacked confidence and subtlety through, what I assume
were, first night nerves mixed with a sense of panic.
As the evening drew on most of the audience
was engaged with, and enjoying Ms. Bodossian’s performance. I am
confident this show will be developing and vastly enrich as I write. I highly recommend it for its ingredients of
courageous performer and writer, excellent supportive musician (David Seedsman)
and insightful director (Merophie Carr).
Good recipe, stunning ingredients, what seems to be missing is just a
little more time for everything to fully congeal.
Bodossian’s suggestive, tantalizing and
sometimes downright shockingly crude material is in need of a more relaxed and
canny presentation. The outrageously
suggestive can be devilishly delightful but needs to be sold with atmosphere,
style and confidence. Certainly the
lights were far too bright and stark to begin with - not a shadow to hide in. If the material is going to strip the performer
of social niceties - then the audience is gong to feel stripped and exposed as
well.
As courageous entertainer Amy’s songs are
rich and gusty and she could fill a much larger venue such as a Spiegeltent. Her Accompanist David Seedsman fluidly and
supportively does ‘beautifully underscore’ Ms. Bodossian’s lovely singing of
some pretty wacky but fascinating material.
As a developing writer, poet, singer and
entertainer who is able to play with the provocative it would be great if Ms.
Bodossian dealt less in reinforcing conventional sexual mores, but rather
responded to them with some refreshing feminism – clarify what she is trying to
say and in doing so add a dash more irony – and really let it rip.
Suzanne Sandow
(For Stage Whispers)
Footnote: I am bemused that this year this is not the
only show offering ‘a free ticket’
to reviewers as if it were a gift. Also
gifts are the hours spent dwelling on, thinking about and writing on shows.
Second Footnote: Also unfortunately on the first night of this
show there was a glitch at the box office that held six patrons in wait for over
10 minutes, rendering at least three of us late for the beginning of the
performance. Disappointing and
disrupting for the performer, I would imagine, as two of us were reviewing. There seem to be heaps of volunteers about but
not enough cohesion. Funnily I remember
feeling much the same thing about this venue at the time of last years Fringe.
