Cabaret / L’esprit de Paris. At Luna Bar, Civic, July 13. Reviewed by BILL STEPHENS.

Today is Bastille Day and Luna Bar has celebrated the event with an extravagant French-style cabaret created especially for the occasion by Canberra-based creative company Kix Arts Productions.

On arrival at Luna, guests found themselves immediately transported into the atmosphere of a glamorous Parisian nightclub when greeted by spectacularly be-jewelled and be-feathered showgirls strutting and posing among the banquettes and tables of Luna’s elegant decor.

However, this was only the start of the evening. After selecting from a range of creative cocktails and sampling dishes from the appealing menu, the event commenced and the significance of the title, L’esprit de Paris, became clear.

As The Marseillaise played, the lights dimmed and three showgirls—one costumed in red, one in white, and one in blue—appeared on stage. Amy Orman, who also served as the compère, performed Cole Porter’s I Love Paris and followed by nine dancers in red who presented a version of Porter’s C’est Magnifique, marking the start of the show.

L’esprit de Paris was created by Kix Art’s artistic manager Kym Degenhart and creative director Amy Orman, who together choreographed most of the show. The production featured a series of lavishly costumed items performed by twelve dancers and showgirls, along with guest appearances by comedy juggler Graeme Fennamore and male vocalist Charlie Reed.

The show featured numerous highlights. Notable performances included the Zou Bisou Bisou routine, choreographed by Amy Orman and performed by Zoe Tuckfield, Emily Bell, Alisha Mohapp, Milly Norris, Lilly Monterosse, and Sarah Tarleton, and the energetic Can-Can, choreographed by Kym Degenhart and performed with panache by Emily Bell, Shakiralea Healy, Alisha Mohapp, Milly Norris, Rosanna Curtotti, and Kate James.

Kym Degenhart is a distinguished former dancer and Can-Can soloist at the renowned Bal du Moulin Rouge in Paris. She has also served as principal dancer and dance captain for Dance Encore Productions in Tokyo and is the award-winning proprietor of Bom Funk Dance Studio in Queanbeyan.

An honours graduate of the Chicago College of Performing Arts, Amy Orman spent three seasons as a singer with the Radio City Christmas Spectacular in New York. She’s performed in a slew of award-winning productions including Smokey Joe’s Café, Merrily We Roll Along, multiple productions of 42^nd Street, and recently dazzled local audiences with her performance as Charity Hope Valentine in Free Rain Theatre’s production of Sweet Charity.

Orman and Degenhart have joined forces to broaden the creative vision of Kix Arts Productions, which has already has a creative partnership with Luna Bar for which it provides weekly Saturday performances.

The recent acquisition of a collection of iconic costumes from Bruce and Lesley Scott’s DanceEncore Productions, some of which are original pieces from Paris and others worn by Degenhart herself during her professional showgirl career working for DanceEncore in Japan, has opened up exciting possibilities for Kix Arts and Degenhart’s ambition to advance the art of the showgirl as well as provide opportunities for paid employment for professional and emerging artists in Canberra.

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