While all the segments of The Unicorn Story Cabaret contain delight and it is a festival favourite of many attendees, the play-by-play of this mythical creature variety show serves as an example of what can happen when risks don’t go to plan. The kind of risk I am talking about is separate from the ‘anything can happen’ factor which most people refer to when talking about improv.  

Festival shows are full of other risks which enhance each format’s inherent risk. People are performing with a limited rehearsal time for the show with people they haven’t played with before. This can creates performance which is fresh and it allows players from across the world to play together.  

While performers might not quite nail the format’s premise, this cross-pollination makes the risk of the shows worth taking. However there are some instances where a failure to commit to the premise can create murky longer-than-planned performances as improvisors try to find their game; they can even scare the audience by not feeling physically safe for the performers.

The Return of the Unicorn Story Cabaret is delightfully presented with the lathered-on charm of The Unicorn (Derek Flores). He shows a remarkable dexterity with his crowd work in the preshow and introduction.

The Unicorn sets the scene with an improvised story, asking what the audience wants and delivers on the demand for an Underdog Story. Accompanying the story of a boxer’s encounter with death is the beautiful accompaniment of The Rose (Jamie Burgess) on the keyboard, who continues to add tension and enhance the passions of the performers throughout the evening. 

We start with the Fate Sisters, who pull an audience member up on stage and spin them a yarn about their fate. Finn, the audience member, seems comfortable with being on stage but seems unsure of his role. The humour of denying his offers by dismissing his responses – “That was not a question” – is funny at first but as it continues it blocks him from being able to fluidly interact. Without this input the scene stays at a single pace and makes his presence on stage feel less important.

Next are real Hollywood stories from two vaudeville spirits who tell true Hollywood stories about dead celebrities. The speed of this style seems to throw the performers, who are unable to find the same gear. These stories incorporate vaudeville techniques, little tumbles, which seem neither fully improvised nor fully rehearsed. This creates a sense of actual danger where I am worried about the safety of the performers and not able to enjoy the action.  

The Dungeon Master follows: an excellent addition to the zeitgeist. The Game Master employs slick use of multiple characters, paints a vivid world and most importantly invites and empowers the two audience members to control the story. The issue here is it requires time to triangulate audience, the performers and the scene which the hour-long (in total) show cannot accommodate.

Squeezed into the final segment is Amanda Buckley as The Siren who sums up the stories of the show. The singing is spectacular and the character is delightful but, already 10 minutes overtime, it is rushed along and the great musical number to close fails to hit the mark.

An excellent, eclectic menagerie which I would recommend even if there could have been a bit more care to mitigate real risks and better utilise the inherent risks.  

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