{"id":14135,"date":"2014-09-14T17:00:34","date_gmt":"2014-09-15T00:00:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/?p=14135"},"modified":"2014-09-14T17:02:24","modified_gmt":"2014-09-15T00:02:24","slug":"ersatz-diva-specializes-in-the-unforeseen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/ersatz-diva-specializes-in-the-unforeseen\/","title":{"rendered":"Ersatz diva specializes in the unforeseen"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0Woody’s [rating:4.5]<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Her two dancing boy-toys, Michael Balderrama (left) and Bob Gaynor, flank Meow Meow at Berkeley Rep. Photo, courtesy kevinberne.com.<\/p><\/div>\n

Expect the unexpected.<\/p>\n

And Meow Meow, leggy brunette bombshell and mock diva, will energetically provide it at the Berkeley Rep.<\/p>\n

She\u2019s fabulous \u2014 in all meanings of the word: mega-excellent; larger than life-sized; and a spectacular invention, in the fabled sense.<\/p>\n

She\u2019s half wildcat, half wild card.<\/p>\n

With ersatz desperation, the combo singer-comedian-actress-dancer weaves her innate talents and cleverness into a triumphant 90-minute patchwork-quilt, musical-spoof that\u2019s headed for Broadway.<\/p>\n

She also parades as a wannabe revolutionary and philosopher (\u201cIs there a God?\u201d).<\/p>\n

But her main shtick is to pull male theatergoers onstage and womanhandle them during \u201cAn Audience with Meow Meow,\u201d a title with multiple interpretations.<\/p>\n

Not for a second did I envy folks dragged from the front rows to paw her legs, grope her torso and act as comedic chairs and foils.<\/p>\n

But those repeated gambits, albeit somewhat cheesy, are extremely funny.<\/p>\n

Meow Meow \u2014 whose given name is the slightly less glamorous Melissa Madden Gray \u2014 along the way dices and slices diva and cabaret mythology, turning theatrical clich\u00e9s sideways and upside down.<\/p>\n

She revels in taking risks.<\/p>\n

She satirizes superstars who thrive on flowers tossed at them, who physically toss themselves onto their fans, who praise to the rafters whatever venue they\u2019re in.<\/p>\n

With hints of, and homages to, Marlene Dietrich, Edith Piaf and Lady Gaga.<\/p>\n

And I wouldn\u2019t be at all surprised to learn she\u2019d secretly viewed re-runs of Carol Burnett and Lucille Ball\u2019s televised physical antics.<\/p>\n

Or been addicted to the black-and-white slapstick of Charlie Chaplin or Buster Keaton.<\/p>\n

Meow Meow, who as a small girl wanted to be a ballerina but ended up getting a law degree instead, isn\u2019t above making cabaret standards her own.<\/p>\n

She particularly excels with Jacques Brel melodies and Harry Warren\u2019s \u201cBoulevard of Broken Dreams.\u201d<\/p>\n

But the show-stopper becomes an antique Bobby Darin novelty hit, \u201cItsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini,\u201d with which she lampoons genre after genre after genre.<\/p>\n

Her being exceptionally limber, agile and gymnastic also allows a self-serving self-reflection: \u201cIs art a woman killing herself?\u201d<\/p>\n

Meow Meow says she especially loves entertaining audiences who\u2019ve grown tired of green witches, jukebox musicals and singing Mormons.<\/p>\n

I\u2019d say the entire opening night crowd \u2014 including me \u2014 fully appreciated her creative efforts in that regard.<\/p>\n

A multi-lingual international star (she\u2019s been a headliner in Berlin, Sydney and Shanghai), she was ably supported by two boy-toy dancers, a four-piece band and a white-mouse puppet.<\/p>\n

And competently directed by Kneehigh Theatre\u2019s Emma Rice, previously represented winningly at the Rep by \u201cThe Wild Bride\u201d and \u201cTristan & Yseult.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meow Meow, whose fame skyrocketed while performing in Michel Legrand\u2019s \u201cThe Umbrellas of Cherbourg\u201d in London in 2011, slyly tries to be mysterious and cloak her origins, purposefully referring both to Moscow and Berlin.<\/p>\n

But she\u2019s really an Aussie.<\/p>\n

I couldn\u2019t determine, however, if she adopted her stage name before or after meow meow, the street drug, gained popularity. Mephedrone, that potent designer amphetamine, has become a British rave favorite because it produces effects parallel to cocaine and ecstasy.<\/p>\n

Meow Meow, the performer who\u2019s also credited with writing her show, supplies a public wave of ecstasy as an alternative.<\/p>\n

Consequently, I might hate myself in the morning for using what may be a cat-astrophic ending, but I really can\u2019t stop myself (she instantly turned me into a fan, you see):<\/p>\n

Meow Meow\u2019s act may not reach purr-fection, but it does come as close as a whisker.<\/p>\n

\u201cAn Audience with Meow Meow\u201d plays at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre\u2018s Roda Theatre, 2015 Addison St., Berkeley, through Oct. 19. Night performances Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Wednesdays and Sundays, 7 p.m.; matinees, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays, 2 p.m. Tickets: $14.50 to $89, subject to change, (510) 647-2949 or www.berkeleyrep.org.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0Woody’s [rating:4.5] Expect the unexpected. And Meow Meow, leggy brunette bombshell and mock diva, will energetically provide it at the Berkeley Rep. She\u2019s fabulous \u2014 in all meanings of the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":32,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"yasr_overall_rating":0,"yasr_post_is_review":"","yasr_auto_insert_disabled":"","yasr_review_type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-14135","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-woody-weingarten"},"yasr_visitor_votes":{"stars_attributes":{"read_only":true,"span_bottom":"