[2014017] The Iron(ic) Lady

[2014017] The Iron(ic) Lady

Sarah Gaul @ La Bohème

4:00pm, Sun 16 Feb 2014

Sarah Gaul’s show last year left me wanting to see how she developed her craft; she had displayed a potential in the tail end of her performance that overcame the irksome start. As a result, I had her pencilled in nice and early; I’d initially planned to catch her opening night, but a friend’s plight prevented me from attending.

So when I fell into conversation with Gaul’s father (of all people) at the door, and he told me that there’d been an empty house on opening night… well, I was heartbroken for Ms Gaul – and a little relieved for myself. Luckily, Sunday was a lot kinder to Gaul, and a healthy crowd had turned up to hear her one-woman show.

And as Gaul hovered menacingly over the left-hand side of the piano, growling and spitting out a song that evolved to be a hilarious turn-off-your-phone warning, she effectively set the tone for what was to come. With a very Jekyll-and-Hyde presentation – gorgeous sweet smiles and twinkly charm one moment, snarls and snark and left-handed bass-note-thumping the next – Sarah seemed to have found a winning formula.

Sure, some of the material in last year’s show was repeated, but only the very best bits: the brutal stalker murder, rowdy vegans, and the stick-figure-car-families all made a reappearance. But her new material was great, too – and, more to the point, it was all accompanied by a satirical bite that was just perfect.

Last year, after a terrible start to her performance, Sarah Gaul showed enough talent to encourage me to see her again; this year, I was absolutely delighted that I did. The Iron(ic) Lady was an absolute belter of a show, and I’m looking forward to seeing Gaul again soon in the Cabaret Fringe… or, better yet, the Cabaret Festival. Because yes, she does have the ability to perform at that level.

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