Food Court Cabaret: Songs And Skits All About Food – Cabaret Fringe Review

La Bohème, Fri 12 Jun Starting with a food tray-enhanced version of Downtown restyled into Food Court and ending with an Old Mac Donald sing-along embellished with intermittent factory-farming jokes, Food Court Cabaret is a witty, well-executed and entertaining show that regularly had the audience at La Bohème in stitches.  If it has anything to do with food, it probably gets sent up here: pretentious menus, foodie photos, fad diets, vegetarians, intolerances, Thermomix converts, reality cooking competitions, Monsanto and much, much more get the irreverent Cabaret treatment. The stage setup is of piano cabaret, and Carol Young, Catherine Campbell, Rachael Kirkham and Matt Russell make the space versatile with clever use of props and wardrobe, gleefully delivering their songs and skits with total commitment. A wide array of comedic sensibilities are catered to, and the show alternates densely-scripted food jokes that are designed to stump even the most well-versed culinary minds with decidedly less demanding humour, including an elaborate and exaggerated fart gag to the tune of Frozen’s Let It Go, complete with audience participation for gratuitous sound effects. It’s worth noting that the varied humour often trades in shock value, and skewers all comers. A rabid xenophobe demands that Australia’s culinary culture be preserved, only to be subsequently rebuked in favour of the yummy bounties of multiculturalism. Tony Abbott is consequently entreated to decide the fates of asylum seekers based on the quality of their food, MasterChef-style. Later on, a thank you to the orangutans for palm oil elicited an audible gasp from the audience. Suffice it to say that your enjoyment of this show probably depends on whether you find hacky or hilarious the prospect of a bit wherein a woman is trying to be vegetarian but for her insatiable and erotic love for bacon. Matt Saunders Food Court Cabaret continues at La Bohème at various times until Sun 21 Jun. Book at CabFringe on 08 8243 0001 and cabaretfringefestival.com. Click HERE to purchase your tickets.