Satirical cabaret artists George Bourgeois and Maurice Maurice have been performing together for ten years and at Provocaré festival, Melbourne audiences are treated to an evening of comedic political activism with their fabulous show How To Save the World Without Really Trying. Capitalism has failed us. As has fascism and communism. So what's left? Well according to Bourgeois and Maurice, it's time to explore the benefits of their unique form of hedonism as the duo rip through various political issues such as marriage equality, Brexit and feminism with razor sharp wit and joy.
At one point, Burgeois and Maurice ask us to lament for the turmoil that the richest and most powerful people in the world feel in having to be in charge of all that money and needing to decide what they should do with all that fortune. It's not easy at all. Meanwhile, Maurice's emotional feminist call-to-arms performance to "kill all men" speaks volumes of truth regarding (in)equality between genders, while also providing plenty of laughs for the audience.
The visual in the show are a constant source of enjoyment from beginning to end including when Bourgeois and Maurice drop in for a Face-time chat with Bourgeois and Maurice to offer up some advice on how to make their cabaret stronger, and the duo's out-of-this-world costume designs. The costumes have a fun intergalactic feel and Maurice's blink-and-you-miss-it outfit change is simple, yet creates a full transformation. The hair and make-up adds to the alternative nature of the cabaret and I don't think I've ever seen eye lashes as spectacular and eye-catching as those that Burgeois was wearing.
How To Save the World Without Really Trying is a perfect example of what late night cabaret is all about. Political, entertaining and though-provoking, Bourgeois & Maurice deliver the goods with this show. Here's to hedonism, and a whole lot of it.
Venue: The MC Showroom, Level 1, 46 Clifton St. Prahran
Season: until 30 July | Tue - Sat 9:30pm, Sun 4pm and 8pm
Tickets: From $24
Bookings: Provocaré Festival
*Original review appeared on Theatre Press on 24 July 2017.
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