Is it okay to poke fun at the infamous Erin Patterson murder case, which gripped the nation in 2023 and became an international true crime spectacle? The jury is still out on that one. But the ethics of true crime is not the debate at the centre of George Glass’s comedy cabaret spectacular- instead, they tell the tale of a trio of jurors attempting to understand the mind of a murderer, while losing their own in the process.
A word of warning – this show, starring Nic Conway, Pud Hamilton, and Chris Nenov, is not really about the trial of Erin Patterson, and it will not hold your hand when it comes to the mundane details of that case. If Nagi Maehashi’s New York Times bestselling cookbook RecipeTin Eats: Dinner and the phrase “tan coloured plate” means nothing to you, there is a chance a lot of this material will fly over your head. But then again, this mile-a-minute musical bonanza is just as likely to bewilder you anyway, with its endless tangents, absurd prop comedy, and songs about what not to wear during a gastrointestinal emergency.
George Glass’s musical numbers carry the work, but it’s the trio’s wacky brand of humour that makes this a totally unique cabaret experience. The tenacious production value on display here evokes- and I say this with the utmost respect – the kind of tenacity only glimpsed at the most ambitious primary school talent shows. However, don’t mistake the homemade-ness of it all for simplicity. There is a lot going on at any given moment, with splashes of stage blood, live musical interludes, and elaborate costume changes throughout.
