Original cast recording? You bet. All seven of Flloyd's original songs, recorded at Crosstown Studio, Liverpool, in 2019.
About the show: Ride along with Dame June Bloom on a journey through the seven ages of woman with sonnets, songs and stories. Life as a touring actor has taught this poet, scholar, raconteur and singer-songwriter a few things, and while she might be getting on, no-one puts Grandma in the corner.
Written and performed by Flloyd Kennedy (with William Shakespeare), directed by Ira Seidenstein (Cirque du Soleil, Slava Snow Show
Audience response, 23 November 2019
"Flloyd Kennedy's show is full of inspirational fun and songs wound around an educational glimpse at Shakespeare's sonnets, giving the audience a fresh insight into the beautifully performed poems. The Bard would love it!"
"I loved the rap. Clearly, Shakespeare was a rapper in his day. He loved words - the sound and shape, the taste of words. Your portrayal of the sonnets showed us this. Thanks!"
London - "loved the ballsy hiphop" "infectious!" "enjoyed unpacking of the sonnets" "a wonderful journey" "she is just a great performer"
Siân Rowland, LondonPubTheatres. says: "Flloyd Kennedy twinkles and twirls in peacock blue (with matching nail polish) and takes the audience on an hour-long romp through her character’s life. I probably learned more about some of the Bard’s best known sonnets in that one hour than I did in the whole of my school career. We were schooled in quatrains and rhyming couplets, imagery and structure. Kennedy clearly adores his work.
"Just as we’re drawn into Shakespeare’s most sublime verse, out comes the ukulele and we’re transported from an outback dunny to the local dance via some musings on life, love, parenting and grandkids." - You can read the full review here
New York - ***** "Ukulele at the ready, June Bloom calls forth beautifully delivered Shakespearean sonnets as she transports her suitcase and her niggling mummy issues across the stages of life. Rap on, Dame June!"
"Flloyd Kennedy's Yes, Because... is mesmerising, especially as it's laced with Shakespeare Sonnets! The vocal pitch range she uses in the course of the show sets a brilliant example for young students who tend to stay within a very small compass."
"For an evening of laughter, whimsy and wit don't miss "Yes, Because...", Flloyd Kennedy's solo show. You'll spend an hour with a woman who will charm and touch you, make you giggle and guffaw, and do it while offering a refreshing, gently eccentric exploration of some Shakespeare sonnets. She sings and plays the ukulele, ponders life and family and British Pantomime - and every moment is delightfully, deliciously entertaining. I loved it!"
Brisbane – **** "Yes, Because... is witty, quirky and intelligent. A genuinely entertaining piece, raw and inextricably funny... Clowning around, switching accents and performing eclectic parodies delighted the audience who responded with bellows of laughter and cheer" Sally Peters, ArtsHub. Scroll down the page for the full review.
Brisbane –“gorgeously vulnerable and funny.”
Melbourne – “one of the most engaging and rewarding pieces of theatre I have seen for a very long time. I found it startlingly and brilliantly unsafe.
Liverpool – “I was captivated… June’s storytelling and songs had me both laughing and crying in equal measure”
Southend – “not-to-be-missed poetic, charming and unique piece of theatre”
Brisbane – “See it! It’s funny! She immediately puts her audience at their ease and walks them down a journey of pain and hilarity.”
Includes unlimited streaming of Yes! Because... the songs
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
...more
Dame June Bloom's alter ego, Fairy Bessie, invents a rap on the subject of being unappreciated at her great age. Photo Jane Hobson Photography
lyrics
They said I was too old to play the Fairy Queen
Which heralded the end of my Midsummer’s Dream-ing…
But I staggered on, to spite them for a time,
Playing Fairies in the Christmas Panto mime.
I loved the sequined frocks, not so much the stiletto heels,
Or the poison-belching fog machine,
The trap door that shot you on stage between
The lover’s tryst and the comics’ routine
And I loved the Act Three reveals.
And I’d do it again in a heartbeat
I’d dress up and make up and start leap
-ing around and around and around and around
Until I get dizzy and then fall down
And let’s face it, no-one wants an ancient fairy
At least not the kind I could play.
What with senility impending,
Knees and hips in need of mending
I should get with the times
And put all my rhymes
To good use, in the most modern way.
Coz it’s all rap now, isn’t it? Well, how hard can it be?
No-one wants an ancient fairy
Not even if she's really hairy
'Coz that would just be scary
And even contrary -
'Coz a fairy with a beard -
Well that's just weird.
It isn't cute to be hirsute
That is not an attribute
That I would recommend
To a friend
On Facebook.
Like the Wily Wizard
Who's still on my casebook...
Yes no-one wants a fairy that's oldie
'Coz she will just be mouldy and coldie,
And her joints will ache,
And she'll maybe break
Her hip, and that's not hip
No, 'coz it's a rule
That fairies should be cool
No twerky, like Mylie
But querky, more like Kylie
(She might be getting on,
But she's no turkey!).
So a fairy doesn't need to be flex
She don't need a reason.
She can still want sex
She don't need a reason.
'Coz she still got magic,
No, she ain't tragic.
She still got magic,
She don't need gadgets
Or even Plantagenets
To Fly Around the World!
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