Performance: The Passion of Lady Vendredi

Right.. as mentioned previously, I was supposed to go to something else entirely this evening. London Dramatic Arts (LDAM) was headed to Dr. Faustus, which I'd booked with them, and I was really disappointed when the Man with the Hat announced that both of his groups (Let's Do London - for less! and London for Less than a Tenner) were headed to The Passion of Lady Vendredi at the Soho Theatre, on the same evening. I really wanted to go to both..

And then, all of a sudden, I could! The mother-in-law of the organiser of LDAM died, as it happened, and the funeral was today, of all days. Last weekend, I found out about this. So the trip to Dr. Faustus was rescheduled, and for cheaper, even! I got a refund of the difference, which more than paid for The Passion of Lady Vendredi. (Oh, and I went for the cheaper London for Less than a Tenner - why not? I'm unashamedly cheap.) All good, and may the good lady rest in peace.

Of all evenings, one of my passengers needed to stay late at work. He kept apologising as he passed my desk.. he had to deal with a stroppy customer, what can I say? We did eventually get away, but the whole way back I was afraid I'd be late. In the event, by the time I rocked up to the theatre, everyone was still in the bar, and I could've relaxed. Slightly., it wasn't more than a few minutes before the house opened.

We were downstairs. We entered a smoky room, with people cavorting through it.. we'd been told this would be a "promenade" performance, with performers moving among the audience. I took what I considered an inconspicuous place - mind you, you're required to move around a bit during the show, so it doesn't really matter where you put yourself. And in this weirdest of performances - rest assured, they will find you..

Ah now here's the fun part. I'm not the first to think this is hard to describe. As soon as I heard the name "Lady Vendredi", I thought of Baron Samedi - hence, voodoo. Gee, seems I was right.. the whole performance had a terrific undertone of voodoo drums, of which I'm a great fan. So far, so good - I was bopping away for most of the night.

I really liked the music - and, indeed, the band carried on onstage for the duration. But mostly, we were distracted by the cavortings of the lead singer and her companions.. now, I've mentioned that it was a promenade performance. Well, for one thing, as they moved through the crowd, they fed us - I got a piece of (salty) popcorn, but missed out on the lollipops - for which you had to kiss the guy on the cheek. (What can I say, he didn't saunter in my direction.)

We had the whole priestess vibe. Not only Lady Vendredi - we got a woman in what looked like a wedding dress (with a veil), and most eerily, a woman in bra and crinoline, strings of pearls draped around her person, and completely enveloping her eyes (at first, when she was led around).

But the costumes got more fantastic, the music more manic, and the whole experience crazier as the evening continued. Every shadow that moved behind me.. every brush of my shoulder.. made me apprehensive about what was about to happen behind me. But, while there was a constant element of audience interaction, none of it was anything much to worry about. And, as the evening drew to a close, we got to meet Baron Samedi himself..!

Terrific stuff. Runs until 30th (not Mondays) - and booking advised, they can't fit so many in that space, with all this other activity. Jeez, I have to hand it to them - this is the most unusual experience I've had in a while, or am likely to have for another while! Afterwards, we went back to the Nellie Dean, where no-one was quite sure what to make of what they'd seen - still, I didn't meet anyone who hadn't enjoyed it.

Ah man. You know what? I think the Man with the Hat (which he'd now taken off) was right - I'd have sat through it again. You don't often see the like. Well, sadly I'm not with him (or either of his groups) again until next week.. and there's a change of plans for tomorrow. I was supposed to go to a comedy show.. instead, when I saw (only this afternoon) that Kensington Classical Music were off to a concert in the Royal College of Music, I decided I'd prefer that. It's closer, for one thing. This, of course, is the group that charges you £2.50 extra just to go along and chat to them.. so I bought my own ticket, and will be looking to avoid them. It's a bigger venue than last time this happened, and I'm sat right down the back, whereas I know they got the more expensive seats. Think I might be luckier this time than last..?

And then it's back to Ireland for the weekend, again. For a break, like..