[2015052] JON BENNETT: IT’S RABBIT NIGHT!!!
Jon Bennett (with Becky Lou, Boris & Sergey, & Lisa-Skye) @ Tuxedo Cat – The Coffee Pot
8:30pm, Fri 20 Feb 2015
So – Jon Bennett is pretty awesome, so It’s Rabbit Night!!! was inked in nice’n’early. But it turns out that this show owes more to last year’s Story (Whore) experiment than any of Bennett’s more scripted shows.
It starts off in familiar territory: Bennett is his usual affable self, and his accompanying PowerPoint decks are full of giggles… and rabbits. There’s so many cute bunny photos on display that there should be a diabetes warning on the show. And there’s also a requisite Rule – You do not talk about Rabbit Night – that I’m kinda ignoring. But it’s not long before Jon starts spinning one of his incredible stories: the orgy/threesome/foursome experience sounded terrifying, but not as scary as taking Fire In The Meth Lab to a nursing home in the UK.
But Rabbit Night is not all about Bennett’s stories; he has guests along to help out, but the running joke is that they’ve all mis-heard the “rabbit”. I can’t remember what Becky Lou’s interpretation was, but the look of shock and sadness when Bennett informed her of her mistake was priceless. Boris & Sergey (and their four human owners) bowled into the room expecting Puppet Night, and Lisa-Skye expected it to be Grab-It Night – a particularly tricky error as she spent her moments onstage offering a woman in the audience her breasts for groping.
As a result, It’s Rabbit Night!!! feels more like a cabaret ensemble show than a storytelling effort, but is no less enjoyable for it. A flakey lighting board also helped maintain a feeling that anything could happen, and when I chatted with Jon after the show, he mentioned that – apart from Becky Lou – he had no idea who the guests were going to be that evening when he started the show. And, once again, I’m left confused and amazed that any of this stuff ever comes together.
(52) JON BENNETT: IT'S RABBIT NIGHT!!!: Rule#8: What happens at Rabbit Night stays at Rabbit Night. More Bennett goodness #ff2015 #ADLfringe
— Pete Muller (@festivalfreakAU) February 20, 2015