LA CLIQUE
Leicester Square Spiegeltent
Christmas in Leicester Square WC2H 7NA
8th November, 2023 – 6th January, 2024
“Born at the Edinburgh Festival in 2004 and subsequently travelling the world to international acclaim, La Clique is widely regarded as THE original Spiegeltent cabaret show that created a genre of its own. With its award winning and superlative family of circus, cabaret and music performers as well as its unique and irreverent atmosphere, La Clique promises once again to be the highlight of the festive calendar as it makes it’s eagerly anticipated return for the fourth year.”
Review by Richard Lambert, 5 Stars
The Spiegeltent, home to many circus and burlesque performance artists, has been around for some time now. The art form has developed and refined and many of the performances are similar in format.
La Clique delivers more originality with their speciality acts. A popcorn machine built into a hat, not too much chatter from the MC, puppetry, singing, balance, hula hooops, silks and aerial ring.
The performances this year are superb! Engaging, enchanting, flirty and holding the audience in the palms of their hands. This is the best of the best of this genre.
Stand-out performances from Chastity Belt with her golden vocals and David Pereira who gets very up close and personal wearing only shaving foam while inviting the audience to use a razor blade to help with the shaving. Hard to know which act is the head-lining act when they’re both soooo good!
In general, there are very few fun activities just for adults and very little entertainment at Christmas time not aimed at families. All too often theatre is sanitised and watered down so everyone feels comfortable. Not here, thankfully, finally there are performers with style, talent, giving you the best night out you’re likely to have in London.
Unless you’re easily offended, or rather too proper to let your hair down, go see this wild show, treat yourself and enjoy a fabulous start to the festive season!
Photo credit Craig Sugden
The Leicester Square Spiegeltent sits at the heart of Underbelly’s Christmas in Leicester Square, which transforms the centre of bustling London into a magical destination. This festive season enjoy the Christmas markets at both Leicester Square and Trafalgar Square. They include a range of beautiful outdoor bars, delicious food vendors and traditional market stalls. Underbelly has delivered Christmas in Leicester Square on behalf of City of Westminster since 2016.
CAST AND CREATIVE INFORMATION
David Bates Australian director, pianist and producer and his family have been touring The Famous Spiegeltent, an iconic antique Flemish mirror tent, around the world for 25 years. Creating a unique environment for countless artists of all genres and inspiring the new wave of cabaret variety epitomised by La Clique. Resulting in numerous awards and industry recognition: the Olivier Award for Best Entertainment in the West End and the Adelaide Cabaret Festival Icon Award, as well as Green Room, Helpmann, Total Theatre, Herald Angel, Scotsman and Perrier awards, amongst many others.
Lj Marles began his circus journey at the age of 17 with Bassline Circus as part of a youth project with local teens. From there he continued his newly found passion at the National Centre for Circus Arts, where he specialised in aerial straps and then developed his own unique apparatus, Tension Straps. Lj went on to tour the world performing with companies such as 7 Fingers, Cirque du Soleil special events, Palazzo and his unique act has won him awards at world renowned festivals Young Stage and Cirque du Demain.
Tara Boom, Australia’s infamous loose unit of something. Always put at the back of her dance class growing up, Tara is now well and truly at the forefront of the Australian Circus and Cabaret scene. Having performed with internationally celebrated companies such as Circus Oz, The Briefs Factory, Blunderland and more. This November and December marks Tara Boom’s La Clique debut. A clown, a juggler and a creative powerhouse, Tara has entertained and confused audiences all over the world. Reviews have her described her as “an act of exquisite beauty”, “the ultimate showstopper” to “curse this satanic vile trash!… you freak demons from hell”. You never know what you will get with Tara Boom. But what you do know, is that you will not forget it.
David Pereira is multidisciplinary performance artist whose work is a unique fusion of acrobatic dance theatre, physical, and visual art. Based in Madrid, Spain, Pereira has developed a practice built on a lifetime passion for the powerful and evocative nature of performance. Pereira has also starred in, and was a lyricist for the renowned musical “Der Helle Wahnsinn” and in 2014 Pereira was cast in both “Cats” and “Big Fish” musicals directed by the prestigious Andreas Gergen. In 2019 David played at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival with “LORCA: A THEATRE BENEATH THE SAND”, an examination of Federico García Lorca’s “The Public”, one of the most complex texts of the 20th century.
Chastity Belt is one of the UK’s most beloved cabaret artistes; a well sought-after Compére, Mistress of Ceremonies and Chanteuse. She has been whipping audiences into shape across the country and beyond for nearly a decade and doesn’t intend to stop any time soon! A powerhouse of a singer with a razor sharp wit, she really is the thinking man’s crumpet and the crumpet man’s thinker. Like most modern women she extols the virtues of forward-thinking and gin-drinking, but will happily drop it all for a suitable suitor with a beard and strong shoulders! When not being a Mistress of Mirth she can be found on the West End; acting, producing, directing and teaching across the capital. Chastity is the perfect blend of powerful and poised, audiences leave her shows beaming, with their sides split and their cockles warmed.
Yuliia Pykhtina is an award-winning Ukrainian circus performer and is a founding member of La Clique. It is time to forget what you think about hula hooping because Yuliia has something extraordinary to show you. Captivating, graceful and impeccably poised, Yuliia turns the ancient art of hula hooping into a spectacular display which is both erotic and exotic. Yuliia has amazed audiences across the world including in the USA, UK, Australia, Canada, France and Europe with her extraordinary re-invention and looks forward to seeing you again in London. Yuliia has been a circus performer since the age of 6 and is the winner of the Bronze Clown at the legendary Monaco circus festival won when she performed with Kiev’s unique and talented Bingo circus group.
Aaron Marshall is a professional handbalancer, trained at the esteemed National Centre for Circus Arts and is a regular fixture on London’s notorious nightlife & cabaret circuit. Having captivated audiences around the world with his daring stunts and menacing twist of his mighty moustache; his accolades include working with Firenza Guidi, Casino Lisboa and appearances on Britain’s Got Talent alongside touring production, Forbidden Nights.
For ticketing information, head to lacliquetheshow.com and follow La Clique on social media @lacliquetheshow
LISTINGS
LA CLIQUE
Leicester Square Spiegeltent
Christmas in Leicester Square WC2H 7NA
8th November – 6th January
Tickets: lacliquetheshow.com.
TICKETS
Box Office: (t) 0333 444 167
Ticket prices start from £22.50
PERFORMANCE TIMES
Tuesday – Thursday: 7:30 pm
Friday – Saturday: 7pm and 9:45pm
Sunday: 5pm
Friday 10 Nov, Saturday 11 Nov and Friday 5 Jan: 7:30pm
Check lacliquetheshow.com for full listings