What a fabulous evening I had at 'Le Wine Club'. Given a free
glass of wine on the way in, really made the show seem an exciting event. The
Other Palace is a wonderful theatre and one I had never visited before. Being
a Londoner all my life this was a revelation. Intimate and bijou. We felt like
we were in a wine bar. This was a new show and only in this theatre for three
days. So, I hope that you can catch it on its travels. 'Le Wine Club' has
previously been performed at Brighton Fringe and Guildford Fringe. I had worked in a wine bar many years ago and
took along my friend who considers himself a wine buff so we were in for a
treat and we did learn some new tips. But don’t drink any wine that is bright
green!
Anna Lou Larkin enters the stage looking like a traditional Aunt
Sally, all pink cheeked and bright eyed, which added to her charm. She entertained
us for an hour with information on how to become a professional wine
connoisseur, what to look for and how to taste it. Larkin, in real life, has
achieved certificates in wine and shares her passion of this elixir of modern
life with us. Larkin’s one-woman show was funny, informative and included a
murder mystery about her beloved Marcel. Larkin has a wonderful singing voice
which she uses to move through a Parisian accent into the broad Glaswegian of
her grandmother Ange, who despite enjoying a glass of wine was also fond of a
can of Tenants.
Larkin includes the audience as part of the performance
and encourages us to smell and slurp our free glass of wine as well as
interacting with her. It is easy to see Anna Lou Larkin’s cabaret background as
she moves around the stage with an effortless wiggle and an incandescent voice.
I loved her accordion playing combined with the risqué verses (all penned by herself).
If you are easily offended by adult themes, this might not be for you, but I laughed
and laughed. She was singing so fast in her French accent that I even missed a
few of the puns. At the beginning of the show she referred to the French
singing sensation, Edith Piaf, and you can see her admiration shine in the
style of her voice and performance. It was a relaxed atmosphere, sitting so
close to the stage with our drinks and feeling that we were actually there to
be taught about wine. This show is a
credit to Larkin and director, Michael Keane (who can currently be seen in the
cast of ‘The Play That Goes Wrong’). My friend and I have been inspired to go
home and try out a few of the wine tasting tips and to use a few of the magic tricks
in the next party we go to. Catch it if you can and congratulations to Anna Lou Larkin for a truly marvellous and endearing show.
Reviewer - Penny Curran
on - 17.2.22
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