This is my eighth year as a FringeFeed reviewer, and I’ve never struggled for so long to start a review. There are simply no words to describe this truly absurd journey into Ruben Kaye’s mind.
An absolute born performer, Ruben had the audience captivated from the get-go. Setting us up with a loose narrative following a veritable scandal of a story about his uncle, his cabaret talent quickly had us traversing the world through song, drama and stand-up bits which could easily make up a show of their own.
Rueben’s political quips are dialled in and funny, giving his show an extra dimension and a huge point of difference from cabaret you might have seen before. Never mean spirited and always earnest, Rueben’s takes will have you laughing along in the moment, and still thinking about how our world works hours later.
What’s going to have you doubling down and booking tickets to see him again though is his amazing voice. Belting out originals throughout the hour, Ruben’s singing alone is enough to make him a world class performer. It was truly striking how quickly he could move the audience from raucous laughter at his tales of woe to pin drop silence as his emotion showed through song.
His control of the audience is like no one else’s.
The cherry on top is how polished this show is. The outfits, hair, make-up, timing and side-eyes are all seriously slick, and it’s clearly a labour of love. What the audience enjoys as chaos and frivolity is Ruben’s well-honed craft.
This show is a must have on your Fringe agenda, absolutely guaranteed to send you into the night ready to dance, drink and maybe even save the world.