timeOUT took a walk on the wide side of life at KurandaCoots' production of The Beast at Centre Of Contemporary Arts last week.

 Blending the worlds of theatre, circus, sideshow, cabaret, burlesque, live music and more into a big night of entertainment, The Beast is KurandaCoots’ second full-length production, and follows the success of The Red Ball.

It definitely wasn’t for the faint-hearted, from watching Piers Freeman put his hand in a bear trap or bang a nail up his nose, to Louise Kohn’s daring acrobats hanging from the ceiling by nothing but a piece of cloth, The Beast certainly lived up to its name.

The music, performed by Trish Molloy and friends, was nothing short of sensational either, totally integrated into the production in a way not often seen in theatre.

The amazing “infinite” set design was also great, as was the live painting that formed the backdrop of the play.

My biggest quibble was with the pacing – I felt at times, the theatre sections dragged out a bit too much between the spectacular acrobatics, lessening its impact and losing some of the narrative.

It would have been nice if they gave the audience a bit of time to clap for things as well – at times it felt like the audience wanted to show their appreciation but couldn’t.

That said, The Beast  was still a fun night out, with its dreamlike story, spectacular props and staging and amazing feats of human skill and daring.

>> KurandaCoots presented The Beast as part of the JUTE Indie Season 2011. 

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