After a smash-hit run over Christmas last year, Le Gateau Chocolat is back with an encore of his incredible Icons at The Soho Theatre. We wanted to find out more about the show and Le Gateau Chocolat.
Icons is coming back to the Soho theatre, can you tell us a bit about the show?
Icons is a celebration of the universality we find in great music, art, moments. They punctuate our lives differently but are, by no means, less impactful. Music; Madonna, Elvis, Whitney, Grease, Kate Bush, Bjork. Moments; Falling in love, friendships, marathons, presidents. Art; Maya Angelou, Jessye Norman, Labyrinth…
What have you been up to since you were last here?
It’s been a bit of a crazy year. Immediately after ICONS which finished early Jan, I flew to Australia, my second home, and embarked on a tour of A Night at the Musicals with my sister, Jonny Woo. I returned in March and started work on my first Chekhov works; The Bear and The Proposal at The Young Vic. After the most ridiculous audition in an Addison Lee for Emma Rice, Chekhov segued to my first Shakespeare; Twelfth Night at The Globe which was simply magic. That went till August when I returned to Australia for A Night at the Musicals for Darwin Festival and the Australian Debut of Tom Waits’ and William Burroughs’ Opera; The Black Rider for Melbourne Festival with anarchic diva extraordinaire and friend, Meow Meow. I arrived home last week, I’m in prep for Duckie, my family show and ICONS… Go, go, go!
Are there any icons you wanted to include and couldn’t? Who were they and why couldn’t you include them?
Oh god, the show could keep going but at approx 70 mins, we had to start making some brutal cuts, they included Barbra Streisand, TLC, Judy Garland, Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Prince, Super Mario Bros… I think at this point, the only reason for not including them was timing constraints. Maybe there’s a part 2?
How did you get into performing?
Through a club night in Brighton called Dynamite Boogaloo. It ran every Thursday at a club called The Joint. Neither night nor club exist anymore but their legacy lives on through people like Boogaloo Stu & Dolly Rocket; who were my cabaret parents of sorts, Gwendoline Christie of Game of Thrones fame, a regular. Munroe Bergdorf, Trans activist, dj and model, a regular. Sparkle Motion and Princess Knickers. I always sang. Every and anywhere that’d have me but Le Gateau Chocolat was born there.
Do you ever just sing for pleasure? Do you have a preferred karaoke song or something you sing in the shower?
I always sing in the shower. It’s a great place to warm up or down but I find it incredibly pleasurable to compete with my favourite divas; Renee Fleming on her pianissimos, Streisand with her lung capacity… Singing is integral to who I am so it’s always happening or about to.
What’s next for Le Gateau Chocolat?
Duckie; a reimagining for the ugly duckling fairy tale.
ICONS; Soho, Canterbury Festival, Homotopia Festival
Jonny Woo’s Unreal Variety at Hackney Empire.
Discussing and making new work over Nov/Dec
A preview of some new pieces for A Night at the Musicals at the Glory this Christmas
A return down under for another A Night at the Musicals tour; New Zealand and Australia.
Then whatever’s in the middle before girding my loins for the ultimate performance platform and market; Edinburgh 2018. I haven’t been since 2016 but I think it’s time to make the pilgrimage again.
ICONS is at The Soho Theatre 31st October – 4th November 2017
