An education in shamelessness

Frisky and Mannish are a covers band - but not as we know it.

At first glance, musical comedy duo Felicity Fritz- Frisky and Hansel Amadeus Mannish could be dismissed as just another camp 'n' sequins cabaret act wreaking havoc on popular tunes.

There are curvaceous and dominant Frisky's electric-purple wigs and sparkling corsets. And fey, slightly built Mannish's skin- sucking leather-effect leggings and Ziggy Stardust-meets-punk-zombie makeup and hair. There are also the pair's repertoire of pop covers, their ever-knowing looks to the audience and copious mock one-upmanship.

What distinguishes Frisky and Mannish, aka British comedians and musicians Laura Corcoran and Matthew Jones, from jaded floor- show warblers is that they sing and play music with conspicuous skill. They display much charisma, wit and larger-than-life showmanship in their show, School of Pop, a cleverly twisted education in the surprising alternative meanings nestling within innocuous chart-topping songs.

Who knew that the Bangles' Eternal Flame was really an unhinged stalker's anthem? Or that children's song The Wheels on the Bus could emanate so much dark sexual energy?

How could the meaning behind Meat Loaf's I Would Do Anything for Love (But I Won't do That) become so chilling when Frisky performs it in the guise of a nervous and innocent schoolgirl?

"School of Pop is very much a school day and you will be educated," says Corcoran, who plays the bubbly yet schoolmarmish English eccentric Frisky.

"We're not parodying songs, we're rearranging them. We start with a history lesson about a chart smash, TLC's 1999 hit No Scrubs, and show that it was actually about Tudor foreign policy and done by Elizabeth I to the tune of Greensleeves.

"After that, it's the dangers of writing under the influence of cannabis, looking at the writings of Alanis Morissette, 4 Non Blondes and Joan Osborne, and much more."

Corcoran and Jones, both 24, met at Oxford University, where they studied English and performed in the Oxford Revue. Corcoran went on to study musical theatre at the Royal Academy of Music before embarking on an unedifying slog through West End auditions. Jones, a trained dancer and pianist, made money as a musician while applying for drama schools.

The double act's first gig was on a barge on the Thames in 2008 where, in response to a friend asking for a 10-minute fill-in act, they came up with an operatic version of Madonna's Papa Don't Preach and a bluegrass-styled Eye of the Tiger by Survivor.

"It was late and the audience was drunk but the response was sudden and warm," Corcoran says. "Straight away, somebody booked us for a bar gig. We were lucky enough to have hit on something that people were familiar with and keen on, and it snowballed from there."

They revved up their costumes and developed some elaborate back stories for each character. Frisky became the illegitimate daughter of a French ballerina who, after being raised by a wealthy English gentleman, received training as a classical soprano.

Mannish, born in Austria, or possibly Liechtenstein, to unknown parents, spent his younger years performing avant-garde music with travelling gypsies before becoming a celebrated burlesque stripper.

Since their last-minute barge debut, Frisky and Mannish have performed in New York, Berlin and across Britain. A barnstorming season at last year's Edinburgh Festival Fringe spawned an almost uninterrupted run of five-star reviews and a wide-ranging fan base. The pair are now in talks to make a British TV show.

"Early on, we made a conscious decision that we didn't want our act to be niche," Corcoran says.

"We need people to have danced to these songs at every wedding they've ever been to so they have that emotional investment in them.

"We're shameless crowd pleasers hoping everybody can have a good time and laugh with music."

Frisky and Mannish, Pacific Blue Festival Club, tonight at 10.15, tomorrow at 8pm and 10.15pm and Saturday at 10.15pm.

- © Fairfax NZ News