The Stage

The Big Benidorm Show

Published Monday 13 February 2006 at 16:25 by Mark Ritchie

With the Costa Blanca full of expats and tourists of a certain age during the winter months, there is always demand for good class cabaret and one of the venues setting the benchmark for quality is the Wheeltappers and Shunters cabaret club.

Compere Chris James is friendly, witty and business-like. He is also pulling many of the techical strings in the well appointed and imaginately presented stage area. It was also noticable that this particular Costa Blanca resident has developed quite a rapport with most of his guest stars.

Masquerade were introduced as a musical tribute to The Carpenters. The wigs and the seventies style clothing completed a stunning lookalike quality of that most famous of chart-topping brother and sister team. Additionally there was a vocal soundalike quality that was both surprising and impressive. Wisely in my view, this act does not attempt to re-create the whole stage persona of The Carpenters and when they speak between the songs the accents are British and the impersonation is quite rightly aimed solely at the music.

Still on the subject of impressions and tributes, The Maxx present their tribute to the television lookalikes show Stars in Their Eyes.

What is all the more impressive is this is simply one female impressionist performing all the lot, while her witty, guitar-playing male partner twinkles in the background with some songs and guitar solos of his own, while his versatile partner is involved in a series of remarkable quick changes. Besides the impressions, both members of The Maxx are clearly seasoned entertainers. The Cher costume was enough to please the men in the audience while, visually at least, the Bette Midler impression was quite stunning. Admittedly all the vocal impressions were not exactly deadly accurate, but when it was revealed that this couple were in fact a couple from the Midlands called Sue and Hal, it was clear that the pair have hit upon quite a novel idea for a cabaret act.

The last time I saw tenor vocalist Richard Williams he was simply a big lump of a lad with a huge voice. The occasion was a showcase event at Ribby Hall in Blackpool and he has certainly come on since then.

Nowadays what we have is a fully rounded cabaret entertainer who seems to possess a natural comic touch, which was displayed during a shaving sketch, where a brave member of the audience clambered on stage and sat while Williams, performing as Figaro from The Barber Of Seville, waved razors and other sharp paraphenalia around with splendid abandon.

All the other tenor favourites that cross the divide into mainstream cabaret were on offer and Williams is clearly quite a hit in Benidorm.

Scottish comedian Rikki Stevens is now a resident in this part of Spain and his hit comedy act served as a prelude to the forthcoming top of the bill item, of which there will be more about later. Stevens just seemed to hit the spot in terms of the strength of his material, with some borderline blue items being thrown in for an audience who were well up for it.

A suitcase standing behind this loud-suited patter merchant was eventually pressed into service as a number of prop-based gags were produced, with hilarious results. Stevens is on the top of his form in Benidorm and seemed totally in charge in the excellent cabaret surroundings at this venue. Dry without becoming brittle, this is a top comedian by anyone’s standards.

There was a discernable shuffling around in the seats near the front of the stage as ‘The British Bulldog Of Comedy’ Albi Senior hit the stage. The reason for the movement was that many had clearly already witnessed Senior ‘working an audience’ before.

This huge shaven-headed geordie bounced on stage resplendent in his full length union jack costume to deliver his own brand of wit and wisdom and this jingoistic comedy foot-soldier certainly does not take prisoners.

All right, so much of the material does not stand up to scrutiny from the more politicallly correct out there, but hey-ho, folk are on their holidays and if they want to laugh at blue gags Benidorm is just the place for a good giggle.

With many of the other cabaret venue owners popping in to check out the talent at The Wheeltappers, it seems that none of the acts on show on this particular night will be out of work for long, in Spain at least.

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