A David Lynch themed cabaret show? Better believe.
I’d never fully understood the cult of the film fanatic. Hordes of people watching the Rocky Horror Picture Show in fancy dress or ‘sing-along Sound of Music’: it all came across as very strange and seemed only to appeal to those who might benefit from a few more hours outdoors each week. However, when I saw that London was home to its own David Lynch themed cabaret show, The Double R Club, I beamed with excitement. I’ve been a devotee of his dark surrealist works since my teens, and I certainly wasn’t going to miss this. So here I am at Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club surrounded by fancy-dressed film fanatics, and for once I don’t feel out of place.
Immediately noticeable is the effort which The Double R Club have gone to in turning Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club into a true Lynchian style club: subdued lighting and a soundtrack of sinister erratic jazz with the familiar heavy red curtains hanging either side of the stage. The centrepiece is a huge illuminated love heart with red light-bulbs lending it an erotic air. After an hour of standing around (no seating is provided for those who haven’t booked a table) the show kicks off with host Benjamin Louche miming to Little Jimmy Scott’s haunting ballad ‘Sycamore Trees’ in the style of Ben, a character from Blue Velvet. It sets off the eerie tone that Lynch fans all love, and his subsequent introduction to the audience shows him to be a skilled and likeable host.
Most of the acts which follow are only loosely connected at best to a David Lynch film, but nevertheless there is some genuine talent on display, like tattooed jazz singer Coco Malone who charms the room with her rendition of Sarah Vaughan’s sultry ‘Black Coffee’. A strange but notable performance comes from a masked sea creature wearing what looks like a straitjacket, writhing around and spewing some kind of fluid onto the stage under a strobe light. It’s an odd, sometimes comic but ultimately disturbing image, which perfectly suits the taste of the room.
Next up is the highlight of the night as Dickie Beau, perhaps London’s fastest rising cabaret performer, performs a piece which involves acting out a recorded Judy Garland monologue. He does this perfectly, accurately miming every word, physically performing the angry outbursts of the troubled star and building upon her jokes with his own comic expressions. He projects each emotion so poignantly to the crowd that we're left helplessly overcome by her tragedy. It's a truly moving performance.
A performance, if you want to call it that, follows from an artist named Traumata, which involves standing in her underwear and making cuts to her own head. I’d love to go into more detail but that’s where it ends. As the blood drops down onto her white corset I wonder, is it real? Is it fake? Do I care? This sort of shock performance art might impress the chin-stroking Dalston community, but the most challenging thought it evokes in me is: “I wonder if that’ll stain.” Amid a roster of genuinely talented acts I feel a bit cheated; she seems to steal our attention without sticking to her end of the bargain to be entertaining. Not something I’d care to see again.
Other than that, the night is a great success. It's satisfied my appetite as a Lynch fanatic and all but a few of the acts have been deliciously entertaining. The Double R Club certainly is a 'damn fine' cabaret show.
Click here to return to the theatre homepage.
Add an event
Micky Flanagan, The Lumberjacks & Kevin Eldon: Editor's Choice - Comedy
Tuesday 28th-Wednesday 29th MayMicky Flanagan: Back in the Game @ New Wimbledon TheatreExtra Wimbledon T...