[2013048] Miss Conlin Confesses
Carla Conlin @ The Promethean
5:00pm, Sat 23 Feb 2013
Another visit to The Promethean on a hot and sticky day could only mean one thing: more mojitos, the presentation of which proved to be a talking point amongst the group of women with whom I wound up sitting. The Prom was pretty chockers, with a really upbeat buzz amongst the audience, and I got the distinct impression that a lot of people present (for this, the first show in Miss Conlin’s short run) were friends, family, or returning fans.
When Carla Conlin takes to the stage, she explains her predicament: by day, she teaches English to boisterous high school students in her prim-and-proper schoolteacher attire; but by night, she transforms herself into a burlesque enchantress, with all the glitter and heels and accentuated curves that the art-form permits. She’s really struggling with these contrasting aspects of her life: not only are the dress-codes at risk of crossing over (with demonstrably amusing results), but the late nights and early mornings are simply incompatible.
As she explores the perils of her double-life (ably assisted by Matthew Carey on piano and her “stage kitten” helping out as needed), there’s plenty of great, humour-laced songs (her dyslexia-induced spelling error demonstration, in particular, was brilliant, with Respect and W.O.M.A.N. getting hilariously mangled), but there’s also an abundance of costume changes (behind – sadly – her onstage folding screen). And Conlin’s costumes are spectacular – gorgeous dresses, insane sparkly heels, and slinky full-length gloves. And bugger me if she doesn’t know how to accentuate every curve; it really was a feast for my eyes.
And whilst there may have been the odd flat note on key changes, and the teaching / burlesque linkage may have become pretty tenuous towards the end, by the time Conlin belted through A Hard Day’s Night to close the show – and then followed up with a Too Darn Hot encore – I was convinced: Miss Conlin (and her curvey curves) could confess pretty much anything to me. This was an immensely enjoyable piece of cabaret, with tongue planted firmly in cheek, and curves clearly on display.