Piaf at the Charing Cross Theatre ★★★★

Cameron Leigh as Piaf ©Gabriel Szalontai 

This year marks the century of the iconic French chanteuse Edith Piaf. To celebrate, Charing Cross theatre unleashes Pam Gem's play, Piaf, directed by Jari Laakso, which was first staged in 1978. The play is quite an eye opener. It pulls away the glamour of Piaf's singing career for the part of Piaf’s life that we are not so familiar with.

As much as she was the Carnegie Hall super star, the play describes Piaf's earlier poverty-stricken life, as potty-mouthed Édith Giovanna Gassion, brought up by prostitutes, and addicted to alcohol and drugs. 

Piaf (Leigh) with husband, Marcel (Zac Hamilton) ©Gabriel Szalontai 

The script is clear-cut. The scenes move from episode to episode of her traumatic life. They are neatly interlinked with her record-breaking songs including Padam, Padam and La Vie en Rose. It’s what keep the play musically alive alongside Cameron Leigh’s perfect performance of the international cabaret star.

The talented performer-musicians are also strong forces on stage, playing several roles in Piaf’s tragic journey. Stephanie Prior is impressive as Marlene Dietrich as well as Piaf's nurse. Samatha Spurgin is brilliant as Piaf's old time friend from the brothel, Toine. 

Leigh with Brian Gilligan, Mal Hall, Zac Hamilton, Philip Murray Warson and Kit Smith ©Gabriel Szalontai 

Brian Gilligan, Mal Hall, Zac Hamilton, Philip Murray Warson and Kit Smith add dashes of humour and electricity to the production, performing a variety of male roles that ruled Piaf's life including German soldiers in WWII, doctors, Louis Leplée (the club owner who discovered Piaf), Theo (her last husband) and police detectives who suspected her of murder. 


Leigh is the tour de force of the show. She nails the title role vocally, characteristically and physically. If you ever wanted to know what Piaf was like in real life, Leigh is your best bet. She can re-enact her every emotion effortless. Seeing her perform Non, je ne regrette rien is a gut-wrenching experience. Many members of the audience had tears in their eyes. However, one wonders if she really was as coarse as Gem depicts her - with an East London cockney accent but, just, the French version.

Scenes where Piaf discovers her husband, Marcel Cerdan had died in a plane crash or suffers from a car crash in 1951, with broken arm and ribs, are convincingly performed by Leigh. The audience pity Piaf's hard life.

If you’re a fan of Piaf, get a ticket now. Cameron Leigh's performance is simply mind-blowing.

Piaf (Leigh) with Toine (Samantha Spurgin)

Currently showing at the www.charingcrosstheatre.co.uk until January 2nd. Click on the link to purchase tickets. 
Director: Jari Laakso; Musical Arrangement and Supervision: Isaac McCullough; Movement Director: Katya Bourvis; Designer: Philippa Batt; Lighting Designer: Chris Randall.
Piaf is produced by Gillian Tan, Blackwinged Creatives, Steven M. Levy and Sean Sweeney.
For more theatre reviews on Trend Fem, click here. 
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Hapgood, Tom Stoppard, Hampstead Theatre (Dec 2015)

Henry V, The Royal Shakespeare Company, the Barbican (Nov 2015)

Harold Pinter's The Homecoming, Trafalgar Studio (November 2015)

Completely blown away by Cameron Leigh who sings the lead role of Edith #Piaf. @CharingCrossThr @PiafLondon pic.twitter.com/5qM6222jA8

— Mary Grace Nguyen (@MaryGNguyen) December 12, 2015

***** Orpheus at the Battersea Arts Centre - A kaleidoscope of Django Reinhardt, Paris, Cabaret, Love and Greek mythology

The Orpheus Gang

 There is a lot to say about Little Bulb Theatre’s brilliant production of ‘Orpheus’at the Battersea Arts Centre but one thing is for certain and that is this kaleidoscope of mixed performances and musical scores inspired by Jazz musician, Django Reinhardt, will catapult an audience to magical Paris faster than the Eurostar. Although Reinhardt is the 1930’s maestro and protagonist who embodies Orpheus (Dominic Conway,) the show is electrifyingly sharp it manages to squeeze in its own creative assemble with added classical edge including Debussy, Brahms and Monteverdi. Parisian cabaret would not be complete without sound bites of Edith Paif that is emulated through Yvette Pepin (Eugenie Pastor,) our hostess who also portrays Eurydice to illustrate the Greek tale. It is a play inside a play.

Yvette Pepin (Eugenie Pastor)

The grand hall is home to Robert Hope James’ historical organ that dates back to 1901, which the Master of the Keys, Charles (Charlie Penn) plays ravishingly through Bach’s Toccatoa and Fugue in D minor. The stage turns into Bar De La Muse where front row cabaret tables, red wine, champagne and camembert are available for an authentic red velvet experience. Within the first few minutes the audience get a run down of the mythology played out fervently but with great amusement. Orpheus does not say a word but Conway’s talent on the guitar needs no explanation as his dexterous fingers speaks volumes much like Reinhardt own musical expertise.

Orpheus (Conway) and his lyre with Tom Penn & Shamira Turner, Clare Beresford and Miriam Gould

A skillful and versatile troupe come together including the strong arms of our actors stage hands, (Tom Penn and Alexander Scott) and the sweet vocals of the triplettes de’antiquite, (Shamira Turner, Clare Beresford and Miriam Gould.) Not only can these guys act, deliberately in an odd way, they can also sing operatically in additional to playing musical instruments. They partake in several plots as artists of the cabaret stage as well as the mythology in elaborate costumes dressed as Parisians, animals and creatures of the underworld. The triplettes de’antiquite jump around as fern, rabbits and Cerberus. Scott and Penn bounce around with attempted ballet jete - the lousy and comedic variation - with paper birds in their hands. 

The Lovers

In Act 2, Scott plays a conniving Hades in mask and cloak showing off his musical mastery with the clarinet, but Penn puts on an androgynous Persephone who beguiles the audience with an unexpected sorrowful falsetto voice. His soothing presence calms a hyped up room and renders everyone speechless.  Yet, as Conway strums his chords harder and everyone puts their fire and might into progressively bashing and blowing their instruments louder they build up a momentum that gets the audience’s adrenaline pumping which diminishes the moment Orpheus turns around. Eurydice grasps and poof - she is gone.

Poof! And she goes!

Orpheus comes as part of the Battersea’s Arts Centre season of Gods, Myths & Legend. Think of Bottom from Shakespeare’s Midsummer Night Dream, think cabaret and tragic love story. ‘Orpheus’ is a jam-packed show which theatregoers won’t have a moment to reflect on as they will be too busy enjoying it.