REVIEWS: STREAMING DRAG: La Voix and Myra live streaming shows

As we enter Week 2 of lockdown, there’s a growing range of live streaming shows using technology to put you on the front row.

International performers La Voix and Myra du  Bois offer very different styles of show – right into your living room.

La Voix , from an unknown location , with a socially distanced 4-piece band, powered her way through her Isolation Cabaret with lots of wicked chat and her usual stylish performance of diva songs – from Gloria Gaynor’s aptly named I Will Survive to Bonnie Tyler’s Holding Out For a Hero. She gives 150 per cent on every song and really raises our spirits in the style of good old fashioned cabaret.

I struggled with the tech to get online initially but the show is a powerhouse of entertainment for its more than 60 minutes. One great element of these inclusive shows with a non-present audience is the ‘shout outs “ that viewers request – mentions  of their friends, family, NHS workers, birthdays and La Voix is happy to oblige at every turn.

She’s brilliant at her torrent of throwaway quips – a “ pundemic “ as she calls it.

And it’s not all raunchy bravado – her rendition of Cindy Lauper’s True Colour is really moving. She does admit to missing the interaction with a live audience in front of her but the tech does help connect people in real time. Her version of Enough is Enough is a show-stopper in itself and worth the £10 fee which is split between the performers and tech staff.

I Am What I Am, Memphis and Total Eclipse of the Heart all make this an unmissable show.

Well you have missed it but watch out on her Facebook or Instagram for details of the next one.

Myra du Bois is a wonderfully talented comic performer, very much in the style of Dame Edna and she carries off her 2-hour show courtesy of London’s Phoenix Arts Club with great humour and perseverance – again despite technical problems.

Anyone who thinks connecting 3 people in different locations plus film on a phone and on Skype is easy peasy should think again and it’s down to the great skill and persevere of Phoenix  co-owner Colin Savage that we get such a great piece of entertainment.

The tech problems just add to the fun and give Myra plenty of scope for witty comments and asides.

In between her glitzy cabaret numbers we get 2 other performers – Burlesque entertainer Jolie Papillon and the outstanding musical comedy award winning Sooz Kempner.

Now Gypsy Rose style burlesque is rather tasteful,  and although my not my cup of tea (and may raise a few eyebrows I’m sure)  it’s a form of entertainment that’s had a resurgence so it is what it is.

Sooz gives a barnstorming performance and is equally at home belting out Garland or Queen’s The Show Must Go On. As she sailed up the scales in I’ll Go My Way By Myself , I did wonder what her isolating neighbours must have thought!

You can catch the show by going to the Phoenix Arts Club Facebook page for the next week.

Please remember to tip the performers and keep live entertainment going.