La Soiree-Fabulous Fun With Dysfunctional Family Values #Show Review

   David O'Mer

La Soiree has 6 shows left in Chi-Town, and we highly suggest you catch them while you can!   This self proclaimed "dysfunctional family" can adopt me any day.   I WISH my family were this wickedly witty, talented and twisted.   These tattooed circus freaks are my kind of peeps.   


Unless you're a total prude or under 18--in which case we suggest you sit this one out--La Soiree is highly recommended.   Do note, this show contains mature themes, innuendo and full on nudity, and is a fabulous night out for laid back adults who love burlesque, circus arts, and internationally renowned, uber talented freaks.


We see a LOT of world class circus arts and La Soiree managed to show me quite a few acts I never even imagined....let alone saw before.  This is one hilarious show that is in turn crass and classy, poignant and pornographic.  I'm still baffled at the magic, strip tease, silk act.   



     The English Gents at Sydney Opera House   Photo by Prudence Upton


And the partner acro by The English Gents was stunningly good.   It was also a pleasure to see a guy on lyra instead of the usual petite pixie girls.   



Bret Pfister


And I've never seen Chinese pole acts done on a revolving pole before.   This multicultural, gender bending extravaganza will leave you shaking your head in wonder and peeing your pants laughing.



Nate Cooper


We particularly dug the finale with a shirtless dude in jeans in a claw foot tub full of water and bungie straps.   It was so gorgeous and so passive aggressive.  He kept doing aerial ballet and dunking down into the water to spout like a fountain on the first row and flip his hair and body around, drenching everyone.



David O'Mer


Crazy stuff!   La Soiree is a magical microcosm of world class cabaret performers, loads of cross dressing, gender bending, and sweet aerial arts and contortionist tricks.    


All the actors were super talented and did circus arts in some creative ways I've NEVER seen.

Yulia

The show must close this Sunday, August 5th, so go already!    Chicago's new Riverfront Theatre is the site of Broadway in Chicago's production of Peter Pan, and appears to be here to stay.   We adore this tent on...you guessed it, the river front.    It's an intimate performance space and La Soiree uses a tiny circular stage, a piano top, and the high peak of the tent for aerial arts, to great advantage.   


Check out Goldstar for discount tickets here, or spring for the ring side seats and get up close and personal with the stars.   You will most definitely get wet, and you may get a lap dance by a big black diva dude, opera singer in spandex!   Or you may get called up on stage to assist.



   Mooky Roundhouse Photo by Prudence Upton




Check out our past coverage here for show times, ticket links, act summaries and a video clip.   

Riverfront Theater presents 

La Soirée  

Through August 5, 2012

Riverfront Theater, located at 650 W. Chicago Avenue, just east of Halsted Street. 

Winner of the 2012 London Cabaret Awards, La Soirée combines cabaret, new burlesque, circus sideshow and contemporary variety.  The sexy, funny, dangerous world of La Soiree has enchanted audiences across the globe in Edinburgh, Paris, Sydney, Stockholm, Dublin, Montreal, Adelaide and Blackpool.  La Soiree’s internationally-acclaimed artists include stars from La Clique, the Olivier Award-winning show which ran at London's Hippodrome for nine months. La Soiree is a dynamic collective of some of the most outrageous, hilarious, beautiful and downright bizarre acts you will ever see.

La Soirée runs in Riverfront Theater’s 70-foot big top circus tent.  Curtain times are:

Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays 7:30pm

Fridays 8:00pm

Saturday, July 21 5:00pm and 8:00pm

Saturday, July 28 6:00pm and 9pm

Saturday, August 4 6:00pm and 9pm

Sundays 4:00pm and 7:00pm. 

Tickets, $39-$85, for the three-week, limited engagement are now on sale at the Riverfront Theater box office, 650 W. Chicago Ave, HYPERLINK "http://www.RiverfrontTheater.com"www.RiverfrontTheater.com; and through Ticketmaster,  HYPERLINK "http://www.ticketmaster.com" www.ticketmaster.com or 888.556.9484. 

Parking is located on Chicago Avenue, next door to venue with direct access to show.  Additional parking is located at 811 N. Larabee and 950 N. Kingsbury.

La Soirée is recommended for Mature Audiences.

La Soiree Cabaret--Burlesque Circus Sideshow Rocks Riverfront Theater

RIVERFRONT THEATER PRESENTS 

THE US PREMIERE OF 

THE SMASH-HIT THEATRICAL PHENOMENON

LA SOIRÉE

Limited engagement-must close August 5, 2012 

**We've been hearing rave reviews and tonight ChiIL Live Shows will finally be checking out La Soiree with our own eyes.   We can't wait.**  

Click here for show video clips

Riverfront Theater, Chicago’s newest entertainment destination, presents the highly-anticipated U.S. Premiere of the theatrical phenomenon La Soirée.  The production runs through Sunday, August 5, 2012 at the new Riverfront Theater, located at 650 W. Chicago Avenue, just east of Halsted Street.  

Winner of the 2012 London Cabaret Awards, La Soirée combines cabaret, new burlesque, circus sideshow and contemporary variety.  The sexy, funny, dangerous world of La Soiree has enchanted audiences across the globe in Edinburgh, Paris, Sydney, Stockholm, Dublin, Montreal, New York, Adelaide and Blackpool.  La Soiree’s internationally-acclaimed artists include stars from La Clique, the Olivier Award-winning show which ran at London's Hippodrome for nine months. La Soiree is a dynamic collective of some of the most outrageous, hilarious, beautiful and downright bizarre acts you will ever see.

Producer Robert Butters comments, “The La Soirée reviews from around the world have been unanimous raves.  We are excited to present this highly-anticipated, sexy and very bold production, which we know will entertain and thrill Chicago.  Arriving direct from Montreal and London, La Soirée is an ideal burlesque/cabaret show for Chicago this summer—and a perfect match for the 22,000 square-foot Riverfront Theater tent. We are proud to be hosting this world-renowned company.”

La Soirée runs in Riverfront Theater’s 70-foot big top circus tent.  Curtain times are:

Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays 7:30pm

Fridays 8:00pm

Saturday, July 21 5:00pm and 8:00pm

Saturday, July 28 6:00pm and 9pm

Saturday, August 4 6:00pm and 9pm

Sundays 4:00pm and 7:00pm. 

Tickets, $39-$85, for the three-week, limited engagement are now on sale at the Riverfront Theater box office, 650 W. Chicago Ave, or on line here ; and through Ticketmaster, or 888.556.9484. 

Parking is located on Chicago Avenue, next door to venue with direct access to show.  Additional parking is located at 811 N. Larabee and 950 N. Kingsbury.

*La Soirée is recommended for Mature Audiences.

About the La Soirée Artists 

Yulia Pykhtina 

Forget what you think you know about hula hooping; the beautiful Yulia Pykhtina has something to show you. Born in Kiev in the Ukraine, Yulia lives and breathes the mystery of the Near East and trails many a broken heart in her wake. Captivating, graceful and impeccably poised, Yulia turns the ancient art of hula hooping into a spectacular display which is both erotic and exotic.

Mooky  

Canadian-born Mooky Cornish, renowned for her side-splitting physical comedy, is one of the funniest ladies working on the international circuit today. Irresistible and captivating, this quirky comedienne has entranced over a million spectators worldwide in both North America and Europe, recently starring in Cirque du Soleil’s most recent hit show, Verekai. The multi-talented Mooky is a pianist, puppeteer, mask maker, accordion squeezer and chicken trainer. 

Nate Cooper

Cooper delivers a jaw dropping performance that is sure to put you in stitches. Try to imagine Charlie Chaplin tap dancing on roller skates whilst juggling razor sharp machetes and you will only be scratching the surface of what Cooper has in store. From the sublime to the ridiculous is an understatement. On the street in New Zealand or in an arena in Las Vegas, Cooper delightfully charms the pants off of himself.  Sit back, relax and enjoy the chaos.

The English Gents

Denis Lock and Hamish McCann are two delightful and devilish "English" gentlemen who perform inconceivable feats of acrobatic skill, strength and balance, all while casually puffing a pipe and sporting the stiffest of British upper lips. The act mixes their highly-skilled stunts with a dry English wit, unexpectedly climaxing with the two hilariously baring near-all for Queen and country and in the process, displaying more pure sex appeal than ever before seen under a bowler hat.

Bret Pfister

Supple, sexy, skilful and stunningly handsome, Bret Pfister brings the finest of New York's cabaret talent to La Soirée. Equally inspired by the neo-Weimar cabaret movement and the nu-wave, synth-pop sounds of the 1980s, he blends awesome physical skill and a cool insouciance into his exquisite, punked-up aerial ballet.

David O’Mer

Hailing from Berlin and originally trained as a gymnast, David has been a cornerstone of this dysfunctional family for many years. His now world-famous incarnation as 'Bath Boy' leaves audiences damp and breathless in admiration – the combination of wet jeans and awe-inspiring aerial ballet is once-seen, never-forgotten. David is the Adonis in denim.

Le Gateau Chocolat

It's been quite a year for Le Gateau Chocolat, the opera-singing diva with a penchant for being wrapped in body hugging lycra and a passion for laughter. Since first performing with La Soiree at the Hippodrome, Le Gateau Chocolat exploded onto London's cabaret scene and has been garnering praise and adoration across the globe - from Edinburgh to Melbourne, and from TV screens to the cover of Time Out. This delicious confection is a killer baritone who delivers outrageous yet moving renditions of everything from pop-rock to opera. A real showstopper, Le Gateau Chocolat has a warmth that will see the whole world addicted to chocolate; that is if you aren't hooked already!

Amy G

The Irrepressible Amy G is a full-on show topping showgirl: she has the legs, the skates, the ukulele, and what she can do with a kazoo will astound you.  A physical somedienne, actor, and musician of prodigious anatomical gifts, Amy is a legend of the cabaret scene.

Susannah Martinez

The little sister of the inimitable Ursula Martine performs her cult striptease act with its mischievous disappearing hanky - a jaw-dropping sensation! From highbrow to low brow and from live art to loquacious party tricks, Martinez treads where few performers dare to go, with the audience right there along for the ride.

ABOUT RIVERFRONT THEATER

The Riverfront Theater is Chicago’s newest destination for music, theater, dance, spectacles and more. Audiences were first introduced to the venue last summer, during the successful 16-week run of Peter Pan. The Riverfront Theater expands on that success, bringing hit productions to Chicago.  All performances take place in the 22,000 square-foot, temperature-controlled tented auditorium along the scenic Chicago River. Alongside the performance venue is River’s Edge, a pavilion tent and promenade area overlooking the Chicago River, where patrons can enjoy refreshments while taking in the view from this urban garden oasis. 

The Riverfront Theater is located at Chicago Avenue and Halsted Streets, easily accessible for those driving in or via public transportation.  For more information please visit Riverfront Theater's main site here.   

Critics around the world have raved about La Soirée:

“Pure adrenalin-fuelled entertainment at its best." 

-Time Out London 

"Beautiful. Funny. Impossible. La Soirée's triumph is that there's not a single moment when one, two or all three of those terms don't apply."

-The Guardian

"Big-top cabaret frolics from La Soirée are just the thing to banish gloomy reality."

-Evening Standard