Get out your glow sticks and glitter balls ‒ the high-octane nostalgia of the Best of the Festivals of our youth is coming in a glorious party tribute show with live, mixed music and comedy.
Macbob (Lisa Bobbert and Aaron McIlroy) with Veranda Panda (Liam Magner and Jane Magner) will blast off the year-end party season at the Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre on UKZN campus from November 6-17.
For those who grew up in the 80s and let their hair down at fabulous festivals (when we still had hair to let down), Retro Fest offers a joyous tonic of memories with a fresh new take on familiar characters and music.
Two pairs of husband-and-wife teams – Macbob and Veranda Panda – will be re-inventing and adapting familiar elements of the festival circuit. Violinist Jane Magner will incorporate her special brand of contemporary fusion violin into some of the songs, and husband Liam will do live music mixes and comedy sketches with Lisa Bobbert and Aaron McIlroy who have created a host of new characters and an awesome playlist.
“When Marvel got stuck in a cultural quagmire, they came up with Wolverine and Deadpool – which was inspired by the comic book heroes of our childhood, but with a whole new contemporary, tongue-in-cheek spin. That’s kinda what we have in mind with this show. Taking what we remember from the 80s festival vibe, but making it fun, fresh and slightly irreverent,” said Liam.
“Festivals have developed their own distinctive aesthetic, and we are exploring that. We are having a blast creating some really zany left field characters and we have selected some great music.”
“It’s familiar but different,” said Aaron McIlroy. “Our approach is comedy focused and taking something familiar and adapting it to make it feel new, reinterpreting some of the music with some modern sounding remixes while remaining true to the original work. Festivals were a huge part of our youth, We want to honour our memories and the great music,” he said.
“The advantage is we are in the comfort of the Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre – with flushing toilets, running water and, after a couple of hours, we are going home to a hot shower and comfy bed,” said Lisa Bobbert.
Music by Kate Bush, eVoid, Yazoo, The Eagles, The Bangles, Boney M, Jennifer Rush, Eurythmics, Freddy Mercury, Queen, and Abba will feature – and some iconic era-defining tunes: Video Killed the Radio Star, Funky Town, You Spin me Round, Tainted Love, Holding onto a Hero, Sweet Dreams, Taxi Man, Dance Some More and Hotel California.
The foursome are excited about the first time all four have been on stage together. Liam and Aaron performed as the Dentist in KickstArt’s Little Shop of Horrors, and Lisa and Jane were both in I love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change.
They explored the all-four-together idea at the Mother’s Day Festival by the Lake in Botanic Gardens earlier this year, and based on the fabulous response, have developed the Retro Fest idea into a full show. They are loving the preparation and rehearsal process, forging creative opportunities enabling all performers to showcase their strengths and skills to the fullest.
“It’s basically a three-course meal of comedy, music and party party party!” said Aaron.
Audiences are encouraged to dress up, festival style. There will be prizes for the best dressed and a concession stand in the foyer to buy festival souvenirs. Booking is through Webtickets.