La Clique at the Hippodrome from 2 Oct 2008

La Clique at the Hippodrome from 2 Oct 2008

La Clique , will open at London's Hippodrome 10 Oct 2008, following previews from 2 Oct - booking to 1 Feb 2009.

A melange of cabaret, new burlesque, circus sideshow and contemporary variety, La Clique is a "sexy, funny and dangerous experience".

La Clique is impossible to define. The press statement says, "On any evening you might see Norway's Captain Frodo whose eye-watering flexibility brings new meaning to the word contortion; Spain and the UK's Ursula Martinez whose show-stopping routines literally strip cabaret down to its barest essentials; Germany's David O'Mer, who has re-invented the pleasures of a nice soak in the tub; Kiev's Yulia Pikhtina, widely considered to be one of the finest exponents of the ancient art of hula hooping; The English Gents performing their inconceivable feats of human strength and skill; Larger than life, London's own Miss Behave - a larger than life, PVC-clad cartoon character with a fetish for swallowing pointy objects; the amazing puppets of Montreal's Cabaret Decadanse's who will instantly captivate, charm and blow your mind; and last, but not least, Mario, Queen of the Circus, a veteran of the New York alternative comedy scene, an uber-cool leather-bursting reincarnation of Freddie Mercury - if he'd ever run away and joined the circus."

La Clique has performed seasons all over the world including Sydney, Melbourne, Montreal, Dublin, New York and Edinburgh.

For the first time, La Clique is coming to London and will make its home in Leicester Square's Hippodrome.

First constructed by Frank Matcham in 1900 as a water circus, the Hippodrome's early performances featured elephants, polar bears and sea lions which all frolicked in its 100,000-litre pool. A hugely varied history has seen it operate as the location for one of Harry Houdini's greatest escapes; and in the '60s and '70s the stage was graced by the likes of Judy Garland, Shirley Bassey, Ethel Merman and The Temptations in its incarnation as the dinner-dance venue Talk of The Town. It was purchased in the early '80s by Peter Stringfellow who turned it into a nightclub and returned it to its original name - The Hippodrome. Most recently the venue has been used for private events, and now with the arrival of La Clique it will return to its former glory.