A picture may tell a story, but when I first saw Kate Hanley Corley’s picture of herself as Francoise (Fanny) Bouffante de VolauVent advertising her Fringe Festival show, French Women do Everything Better, it said nothing to me that was pro-French or anti-French but merely left me questioning her incongruous hairstyle, which was more like that of a boarding school English child. What was she trying to say? I’m still wondering, and – particularly – wondering why I, along with barely half a dozen other people, sat through to the end of a show which had none of the wit, the panache nor the humour for which the French are famous, especially when they’re laughing at themselves.
While I appreciate that the Fringe Festival was originally designed, according to Wikipedia, to ‘encourage, represent and unite artists of all disciplines’, it is also purported to provide ‘invaluable development and presentation opportunities’ to performers. One can only hope that this is a continuing function, as Kate Hanley Corley desperately needs somebody, other than herself and her fellow writer, to help her hone her craft.
It is difficult enough for most to stand up in front of a group of people and make a speech; to also sing, mime, speak clearly (particularly if mimicking a foreign language) and deliver a clever repertoire before an audience takes a lot more than a random idea and a big ego. A small venue like Club Voltaire, which holds a maximum of 50 people, is probably one of the most difficult and confronting for a performer but a true professional can control and engage the audience in such a space with an intimacy often lost in a larger venue. With such a provocative title and the odd line like ‘Not everyone is born with garlic in their genes,’ this show should have been a winner.
Kate Hanley Cornley certainly has a degree of skill in the areas of voice, mime and language. Her impersonations of Marcel Marceau and her song about ‘Garlic, butter and parsley’ almost brought some laughs but presentation, script, choreography and direction, Je regrette, were sadly lacking, along with the essence of everything French – style!
Rating: 1 ½ stars out of 5
French Women Do Everything Better, with Fanny Bouffante, author and French style icon
Performed and devised by Kate Hanley Corley
Written by Kate Hanley Corley and Edwina Exton
Club Voltaire, North Melbourne
27 September – 5 October
Melbourne Fringe Festival 2013
www.melbournefringe.com.au
18 September – 6 October
