La Soirée

Entrance to LA SOIRÉE at the South Bank Big Top in London.

The 2010 London season of La Soirée opened to numerous strong reviews from theatre critics. Following its press night on 21 October 2010, La Soirée received four-star reviews from Time Out,[33] The Guardian,[34] The Daily Telegraph,[35] The Independent,[36] The Sunday Times,[37] Financial Times,[38] Evening Standard,[39] Metro,[40] Boyz[41] and UK websites MusicOMH[42] and Whatsonstage.com.[43] The show received five-star reviews from the Sunday Express[44] and Pink Paper.[45] Positive reviews for La Soirée were also received from The Stage,[46] Official London Theatre[47] and the UK comedy website, Chortle.[48]

Writing for the Sunday Express, Mark Shenton commented: "Christmas arrives earlier every year, it seems, but La Soirée, a rebranded but happily not repackaged version of the circus burlesque La Clique previously seen at Hippodrome, London and The Roundhouse, is the first show to engender all-year-round festive cheer."[44] Caroline McGinn of Time Out rated La Soirée "Show of the Week" and said: "'La Clique'′s sequel, 'La Soirée', has the same winning formula plus a line-up that's the strongest yet" and is "something you won't find elsewhere in the mainstream: variety that's genuinely varied - and burlesque with balls."[33] The Critics' Choice section of the same magazine noted "the freakishly talented folk from 'La Clique' are back in a plush new South Bank tent and the line up, with old acts doing new tricks, and some new faces, is better than ever."[49]

In The Guardian, Brian Logan wrote: "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" and described the show as "timeless and unpretentious, captivating and almost as light as air."[34] Stu Hurford of Pink Paper wrote that "the whole evening offers a quirky sense of fun, which is the true genius of a show like La Soirée."[45] In Boyz (magazine), Joseph Cattell commented: "Funny and surprisingly touching, La Soirée is not only testament to the breathtaking beauty and strength of the human body, but proof that freaks really do have all the fun. An unmissable evening."[41] Evening Standard′s Fiona Mountford commented: "The exuberant international stars of last year's award-winning entertainment La Clique are not the sorts to be down in the dumps for long, which is why their sparkling new show, celebrating the ongoing revival of the variety/cabaret genre, is just the thing to combat the gloom."[39] The Daily Telegraph′s Charles Spencer echoed this sentiment: "Mixing good humour and glamour with a thrilling frisson of danger, La Soirée offers a wonderfully warm and welcoming refuge from the cold, scary world outside."[35]

Ian Shuttleworth of the Financial Times called La Soirée "the continuation of La Clique...as a return to this alternative cabaret show's roots" and stated that "shows such as La Soirée confirm that variety cabaret isn't dead yet, and that it would be a shame to lose it."[38] David Jays of The Sunday Times commented that the show "generates enough cheer to survive the bleakest winter"[37] and naming La Soirée "Theatre Pick of the Week", said "the team behind La Clique bring supreme talent to bear on madcap acts."[50] Metro newspaper's Keith Watson said: "La Soirée is La Clique rebooted, with most of the top acts from last year's giddy marriage of acrobatics and burlesque giving their tricks a new twist. But even if you caught La Clique, you won't feel shortchanged."[40] Writing for MusicOMH, Sam Smith stated: "La Soirée is essentially the new incarnation of La Clique, and retains some of the original production team, many of the original performers, and undoubtedly the same spirit of wacky, alternative and mesmerizing fun."[42]

Upon its return to London in its second year at The Roundhouse, La Soirée again received strong to rave reviews from theatre critics. Five-star reviews were received from Time Out[51] and the Sunday Express,[52] while four-star reviews were given by The Guardian,[53] The Daily Telegraph[54] and the Evening Standard.[55] Positive reviews for La Soirée were again received from The Stage[56] and Chortle.[24]

After its press night on 28 November 2011, Time Out's Abigail Lelliott rated La Soirée five stars, calling it "endearing and exhilarating, pure adrenalin-fuelled entertainment at its best. The perfect Christmas cracker"[51] while pointing out that "the seamless production allows no time for you to pick your jaw up off the floor before the next act takes to the stage."[51] In a glowing review, Mark Shenton of The Stage claimed that "this ever-morphing smorgasbord of cabaret delights is pure pleasure, achieving a scintillating combination of dash and daring, sexy and silly, and wicked and witty."[56] The Daily Telegraph′s Charles Spencer praised the cast "as stuffed with good things as the richest of Christmas puddings" and declared "there isn't a dud act on the bill. For risqué humour and spectacular stunts, La Soiree remains the best ticket in town."[54] The Evening Standard′s Bruce Dessau called La Soirée "a sexy, slapstick, eye-poppingly scary spectacular."[55] Brian Logan of The Guardian again rewarded La Soirée with a four-star review, claiming that "as it returns for Christmas with a handful of new acts, there is no diminishing in the quality of the show that provided such a sassy, delinquent thrill on the South Bank last year" and that "the gasp factor is as lungbustingly high as ever."[53] In comparing The Roundhouse season to the previous one at the South Bank, Chortle's Steve Bennett wrote that "the variety line-up offers a well-judged mix of old favourites and new delights, all remaining true to the burlesque ethos and so ensuring another decadently stylish and daringly entertaining night out."[24]

Following its press night at the Sydney Opera House on 6 January 2012, La Soirée opened to rave reviews from the Australian press, receiving four-and-a-half star reviews from The Sunday Telegraph (Australia),[57] and four-star reviews from Time Out (Sydney)[58] and The Sydney Morning Herald.[59] Positive reviews were also received from The Daily Telegraph (Australia)[60] and Australian media site Crikey.[61] For Australia's Daily Telegraph Melissa Matheson described La Soirée as "circus like you’ve never seen before. It’s cheeky, it’s clever, and it’s damn sexy."[60] Jo Litson from The Sunday Telegraph (Australia) called La Soirée "a rejuvenating dose of delirous escapism and the most fun-filled show in town".[57] The Sydney Morning Herald’s review noted that "La Soirée’s cast shines, treating showmanship and an earthy connection with the audience with as much importance as the acrobatic, comedy and variety skills."[59] In his review for Crikey, Lloyd Bradford Syke concluded: “La Soirée is all about joie de vivre. You’ll know you’re alive, for a couple of hours, at least."[61]

La Soirée has often been cited as an example of the recent mainstream popularity of the burlesque and cabaret genres, particularly in London.[65] Mark Shenton wrote in The Stage that "burlesque has undergone something of a resurgence in the last few years, and La Clique/La Soirée have been a pioneering exponent of packaging it as something hip, accessible and intensely theatrical."[66] In The Sunday Times, Stephen Armstrong writes: "Burlesque is striding into the mainstream, heels high, arms akimbo and nipple-tasselled chest thrust firmly forward. Although new burlesque started in America, it has been embraced with more fervour over here. La Soirée, for instance, brings together contortionists, male pole dancers, acrobats and comedy."[67] In ES Magazine, Richard Godwin concurred: "Burlesque is booming. In 2008, the alternative variety show La Clique, which featured Ursula Martinez's subversive, pyrotechnic striptease among endearingly eccentric circus acts, won a Laurence Olivier Award and ran for nine months at the Hippodrome, London before smashing box-office records at The Roundhouse. The follow-up, La Soirée, is doing a roaring trade on the South Bank, where the run has been extended."[68]

In a special issue dedicated to the flourishing London cabaret scene, Time Out′s Ben Walters says, "Thanks to La Clique and La Soirée, the Cabaret scene in London has never been bigger...West End crowds flock to grand-scale shows like the Olivier Award-winning La Clique and La Soirée."[69] In the same issue, in listing La Soirée as a top burlesque pick and critics' cabaret choice, Time Out stated: "West End hit La Clique put cabaret performance on the mainstream map, and La Soirée is making sure the party continues."[69] In her article for The Independent, Holly Williams writes: "the Edinburgh festival has, for the first time, a dedicated cabaret listings section – which is apt, given it was a fringe export, the spectacular La Clique, that spearheaded cabaret's renaissance."[70]

In November 2011, La Soirée was nominated in the first annual London Cabaret Awards, which celebrate the growing cabaret scene in London. La Soirée won in the category of Best One-Off Show.[26]

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