THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
Kiki and Herb, who emerged from the underground gay/performance art scene in New York, were legends on both sides of the Atlantic and frequent performers in London. “Keep it pretty, keep it shallow, keep it moving” was Kiki’s glorious mantra. Their act, a faux cabaret duo, combined subversive, caustic wit with immense musicianship. They’d twist recent rock and pop standards with a delicious but affectionate irony, so that they made you laugh and cry and you couldn’t really figure out why. They called it a day after a triumph at Carnegie Hall. Now Kiki is back as Justin Vivian Bond and though the new persona is confidently non binary, the spirit of Kiki remains undimmed.
Here Vivian is joyously paired with the spritely countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo, who was recently acclaimed in Philip Glass’s Akhnaten at the Met and at ENO and in Glass/Handel at the recent Proms. The combination is pure magic.
The antique musical hall environs of Wilton’s, which always fused high and low art, couldn’t be more perfect for this pairing when you consider that in the 19th century stars from Covent Garden would show up here after their shows to do ‘turns’. It’s like the place has come full circle. This show too is like surprisingly finding yourself at a great late-night party where people might do a number, except here the casual vibe masks great artistry, thought and preparation.
The starting off point is their differing voices and their differing journeys and this fantasia of contrasts works so well because of the connections that are made. While Vivian will slyly lampoon the opera world, Costanzo’s contributions are done, ahem, totally straight, and his incredible vocal and dramatic artistry is given full space to shine.
In a night of riches, it is impossible to single out any number but mashings of Bizet’s ‘Habanera’ and Neil Diamond’s ‘I Am... I Said’ will stay with you. That was about Vivian’s desire to mime like Lena Lamont in Singin' in the Rain with, here, Costanzo behind the curtain. There are beautiful blends of Jobim’s ‘Waters of March’ with ‘Autumn Leaves’ or Orfeo ed Eurydice with Peter Gabriel’s ‘Don’t Give Up’, or Glass’s Akhnaten with ‘Walk Like an Egyptian’.
There’s a tribute to ‘70s disco icon Sylvester and Costanzo gives us Liszt, Mozart, Gluck and Purcell with an astonishing finale, fusing ‘Dido’s Lament’ with the other Dido, and her song ‘White Flag’.
The dramatic music is perfectly leavened with the comedy and there are few on this planet with better comic timing than Vivian. Director and co-creator Zack Winokur deftly paces the show to up the entertainment quotient, and it adds up to a warm, fun and totally accessible evening. It’s an object lesson in how you can illuminate and entertain at the same time.
The design (great use of drapes!) is theatrical simplicity in itself, and Daniel Schlosberg’s 9-piece band, working to arrangements by the great composer Nico Muhly, create the perfect blend of the sacred and the profane. This started out at St Ann’s Warehouse in Brooklyn, and one hopes will have a long life.
