CAST: Kieran Rennie, Craig Kallis, Gavin Esterhuizen, Desire Hennings, Nadine Sisam, Elme Jacobs, Ralph Martin, Rainer Jadischke, Fresh and Brian Fraser
VENUE: Barnyard, Gateway
UNTIL: August 29
RATING: ****
Adrian Paulsen is a director who leaves a unique stamp on any show he has a hand in.
Most Barnyard punters are looking for a fun, light-hearted night of musical entertainment. They have finished grafting, they want to give the brain a rest, sit back and enjoy those tried, tested familiar pop songs.
Nothing wrong with that, and the Barnyard has it down to a T.
But there are shows and then there are shows.
This is a show which, even though we are back in Bee Gees/Abba territor, (songs we have heard and seen interpreted a hundred times) it has that X factor.
In imitation of the Bee Gees in their early days, you can send your male cast members out in horrific wigs. But tweak the moment, as Paulsen has, and you can turn groans to good-hearted laughs.
All the way through this new show, celebrating two of pop industry's biggest ongoing success stories, there are moments which lift Super Troupers above the norm.
Just tiny tweaks here and there, like the drag scene for Take A Chance On Me or Ralph Martin's Smoke on the Water intro for Mamma Mia, makes all the difference.
With both groups hanging their beautifully crafted hits on close harmony (Robin Gibb's falsetto vibrato was the hallmark of many of the Bee Gees' earlier songs), it stands to reason that the vocal cast must be talented and tight.
There are no weak links. The vocalists - Kieran Rennie, Craig Kallis, Gavin Esterhuizen, Desire Hennings, Nadine Sisam and Elme Jacobs - are all, in their own right, spot-on singers and entertainers.
As the show progresses, apart from the duets, threesomes and group numbers, each singer gets their moment to take the solo spotlight and it's all pretty faultless.
As a woman I shall probably get clobbered for mentioning this, but turning round and looking at the audience I couldn't help noticing that every time Desire Hennings popped up, most of the males were mesmerised.
This is not to take anything away from talented, very attractive vocal entertainers Nadine Sisam and Elme Jacobs, but some women have assets with a capital A. Just think Jordan...
The small band produces near-perfect backing, from the Bee Gees' Words to I've Gotta Get A Message to You, Massachusetts and New York Mining Disaster, to Waterloo, Money Money Money, Dancing Queen, Voulez-Vous, Knowing Me Knowing You, Stayin' Alive, Night Fever, Tragedy, I Have a Dream et al.
Both bands composed for other singers and some are included - Benny and Björn's One Night in Bangkok and I Know Him So Well (a charming duet) and the Gibb Brothers' Islands in the Stream (a fun Afro rap version), Heartbreaker, If I Can't Have You and Grease.
Great show, eliciting two encores the night we went.
The annual femme charity night happens on Thursday, August 26, with ECR's Dave Guselli as MC.
Your R120 ticket includes a goodie bag. Proceeds to the Bobbi Bear charity.
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By Sally Scott
