THEATRE: WHAT A SHOCK N SHAME

Returning from London to present What a Shock ‘N’ Shame writer Tony Taylor delivers a thoroughly theatrical evening of laughs with just a dash of audience participation. Set in London in 1888, the Autumn of Terror, with Jack the Ripper lurking behind every gas lit streetlamp, a small company of actors, at the Paragon Theatre of Varieties, gallantly present a melodrama adapted from East Lynne, a novel by Mrs Henry Wood. From witty wordplay to indigestion jokes (caused principally by an overdose of “Welsh Rarebit”), What a Shock ‘N’ Shame serves up an evening most aptly described as rollicking. The pallid faced, bodice wearing cast remain impressively in character, even before you enter the theatre and through intermission, and the main action is delightfully interspersed with anachronistic song and dance numbers performed by the village choir, providing some comic relief from all that farce. As Tony Taylor says, perhaps what we all need most at the moment is a night of fun, and the audience at the world premiere certainly responded, delivering their cheers and sneers with impressive conviction. My advice; grab yourself a drink, leave your cynicism at the door and abandon yourself to the sheer fun of it all.

Until Nov 7, New Theatre, 542 King St Newtown, $22-28, 1300 306 776 or mca-tix.com.au