06/10/13: There is nothing particularly restful about Sundays out there in cabaret-land. It’s the day when revellers, who are partial to a sequin or five hundred, venture out in their droves to their favourite afternoon/evening of kitsch entertainment, determined to squeeze every last drop out of the weekend, and to do it in style.
And there’s never been a time (as far as we can remember – hazy memory though) when the choice of Sunday soirées in Central London has been greater. The latest venue to get bitten by the infectious drag bug is Manbar – the place we usually fall into at 2am to simultaneously slurp sambuca and flirt unashamedly with the beefed-up bar boys.
The ambitious itinerary of cabaret kicked off last Sunday with a new weekly gathering, Sunday School, hosted by Myra Dubois. Supported by Britain’s Got Talent trio The DreamBears, who served up a selection of well choreographed dance routines in their own fierce, furry and fabulous fashion, Myra treated her congregation to everything from Britney Spears – reggae style, through to a maniacal performance of Fuck the Pain Way, backed by resident organist Sarah Bodalbhai.
As Louis Walsh would say on the Snore Factor: “You really make the song your own”. And Myra certainly does that. You’re through to the judge’s houses in Bognor, dear. She mixes it all up with humorous anecdotes and commanding audience control (god help you if you don’t pay attention).
Weaving amongst her disciples she has a great knack of being able to talk TO the audience – in an imperious way of course – having off-the-cuff conversations, rather than talking AT them. This creates a relaxing atmosphere and feel – which, let’s face it, is what you want on a Sunday.
A night with Myra is almost like visiting your eccentric yet glamorous mad aunt in the nursing home. The one we mustn’t discuss at family gatherings. And that mad aunt has been on the gin, and whiskey, and advocat, and Night Nurse. And boy does she have opinions.
Auntie Myra packed them in and carried off an impressive debut of her Sunday School. Another soirée to add to our Sunday cabaret crawl list…
Manbar, 79 Charing Cross Road, Soho, WC2H 0NE
Words by Jason Reid
Photos by Chris Jepson
