I was recently invited by Theatre Royal Plymouth to attend Gloria in the Mist, through the Bloggers Scheme. If you don’t know what this scheme is about, read my short announcement for it here. This is the second performance I have watched with the other bloggers, after we watched BIG The Musical for our launch evening.
We were in for a massive treat here, as not only were we watching the show but also meeting the comedy duo Spitz & Co. Susie Donkin and Pauline Morel met at a Spymonkey Clown workshop, it was this meeting where Spitz & Co was created. Gloria in the Mist is actually a sequel to Gloriator, a version of the Hollywood blockbuster Gladiator.
It was a lovely treat to meet Susie and Pauline, they showed us around their stage in The Drum at Theatre Royal Plymouth. This was an hour before their show, so we were watching them prep the stage. It was interesting to see that their props were just things they had acquired over time.
Things like a kids play tent, plant pots, watering cans, stuff that to look at before the show, I had no idea what they could be about! As it was only them two for the show, they had no one behind the screens to pass out the different props. It was an organised mess behind the screens, you and I wouldn’t have a clue but of course, they did.
Everyone is different, so it’s always hard to find something that people would want to see and of course, laugh about. Susie and Pauline have their moments where they don’t find one another ideas funny, this is where their director Angus Barr comes in to make their ideas work together.
Anything can happen during a show, sometimes the duo tweak things throughout a live show, if they want a different approach to something. Even when accidents appear, they try and find a way around it, so the audience believes it’s a part of the act. We also explored their dressing room, that they both share for the course of the show.
This is the area where both of them get dressed for the show but it’s also where Pauline focuses herself to become her character. Susie also introduced her favourite prop of the show, a very snazzy Roller Banner. It was very colourful and attending grabbing, seeing it first time, I was very intrigued to see how it would be used in the show.
After having a nice chat with the duo, we left them so they could prepare themselves and get ready for the show. I don’t want to spoil the show too much, as you need to experience the comedy for yourself! I will though, give you an introduction to the show and of course, what it is about to get your imagination running.
Gloria in the Mist is also known as Glorilla, the second show in the trilogy by Spitz & Co. Along with being a Gladiator, Gloria Delaneuf, played by Pauline, is also an International Animal Communicator. After coming back from her journey with the gorillas of the Kungalunga Jungle, she has written a book to share her life-changing experience.
Gloria is joined by her over-enthusiastic tour manager Josephine, played by Susie, who makes the show even more funnier! She also takes the part of Micky, a special gorilla to Gloria. Josephine seems to do everything wrong, never at the right place at the right time to help out Gloria with her story telling.
On the Theatre Royal Plymouth website, they describe the show as Expect gorillas, mist, snow, bikinis, romance, ‘interpretive’ dance, mayhem, and a lot of laughs in this a hugely entertaining evening! I definitely agree with this statement. I could not control my laughter, I think even one point I was crying with laughter!
There we go guys! I hope you have enjoyed this introduced to Gloria in the Mist. I loved every second of the show. I would definitely go and watch it again. Let me know in the comments what/who makes you laugh!
An Ocean Glimmer 