The Tiger Lillies
Soho Theatre Walthamstow
Friday 6th June
“The world’s foremost neo-Brechtian-post-punk-falsetto-squeezebox-gypsy-cabaret-three-piece band, The Tiger Lillies, will perform at Soho Theatre Walthamstow for one night only on 6th June, delivering an evocative, provocative and unforgettable show inspired by frontman Martyn Jacques’s memories of life in Soho during the 1980s.
Drawing from an era of gangsters and working girls, midnight boozers, drugs, and a cast of friends both past and present, this exclusive show conjures a world of noir romance and gutter glamour. Jacques – the magnetic, mercurial voice and vision behind the band – returns to his roots with a new suite of original songs penned especially for this night, which also form the backbone of the band’s next album called ‘Serenade from the Sewer’, due for release in October 2025.
Formed in 1989, The Tiger Lillies have carved a genre-defying path through the musical landscape. Their sound is a dark and delicious cocktail of pre-war Berlin cabaret, anarchic opera, and gypsy punk, echoing the voices of Bertolt Brecht and Jacques Brel, spiked with the punk bite of London’s underbelly.
With shows like Shockheaded Peter, The Ancient Mariner and The Tiger Lillies Christmas Carol, they have earned critical acclaim the world over, with accolades including an Olivier Award for Best Entertainment and a Grammy nomination for their fearless innovation and deeply emotive, often disturbing performances.
This one-night-only performance promises all the black humour, melancholy beauty, and twisted elegance the Lillies are famed for – a heady dive into the seedier side of London, brimming with songs that lament and celebrate life’s darkest corners.
The Tiger Lillies have recently composed music for film ‘Modi, Three Days on the Wing of Madness’, directed by Johnnny Depp, underscoring their continued status as boundary-pushers in music, theatre, and film.”
Review by Richard Lambert, 2 Stars
This new theatre is amazing! Huge and glorious it’s a welcome addition to the area!
Unfortunately, the band feel very dated. What was once a one-liner of significance stretched out into a song and repeated many times just doesn’t work these days. The face-paint image is old-fashioned. The video images that aren’t sync’d to the songs and irrelevant to anything except the title of the show are annoying when they’re all just on repeat and you see the same video clip time and time again. The modern lighting rig was able to re-create the old-fashioned shadowy looks of a small touring par-can show.
The audience was mainly die-hard fans who loved the music. The lead guy singing falsetto while playing an accordian, the guy on strings playing a saw, and the drummer well playing drums. Despite this, the house had a fair number in the audience and some of the fans cheering and standing ovations after every song. The lyrics were often difficult to hear but if you’re a fan you likely know what’s being sung anyway.
I can’t say they won me over to become a fan with songs that just felt rather plaid with no musical staging, just standing, singing and playing might be their gimmick but it’s not very interesting.
However, do keep an eye on the venue and if something takes your fancy please go cos the venue is glorious and definitely worth seeing!
Photo credit: Ricardo Abriz
Show: The Tiger Lillies
Date: Friday 6th June 2025
Time: 8:00pm
Venue: Soho Theatre Walthamstow
Address: 186 Hoe Street, Walthamstow E17 4QH
Price: from £11
Box Office: sohotheatre.com