Live Review: The Gangsters' Ball

Something of a cross between a traditional cabaret and a retro gig, The Gangsters' Ball is mostly simply an excuse to dress up, with outerwear as underwear the dress code for the ladies.

All rooms of The Metro were open, with craps tables upstairs, beauty and photo booths, as well as a dedicated DJ dance floor and the main stage, which is where Limpin' Jimmy and Swinging Kitten had the dance floor packed before MC Leila Leontine set the mood for a night of slapstick, sideshow and stripping.

Adam Mada added some mystical magic to the night, juggling master Jeremy Ansley made the difficult seven rings look easy and Captain Finhead liked playing with sharp knives and nails. Donny Vomit brought the lols and gasps with his various skull-piercing and whip-cracking antics; never mind the insanity of letting a pissed audience member pull the sword he swallowed out of his stomach. The Pretty Things Peepshow added some beautiful burlesque to the mix, with contortion, hoops, razorblade swallowing and some good old-fashioned boobs on fire. Yes, boobs on fire.

In between all of the crazy the Sydney Swing Katz showed the already bouncing crowd how to pull a routine together, complete with swing, rock'n'roll, Charleston and lindy-hop, and The Velvet Set soothed the crowd from the angst of potential crowd-participation nominations with some swing classics and a chance to make their own moves on the floor. 

There was yet more pyro as Strings On Fire, who do exactly what it says on the packet, showed how acrobatics and playing violins can be made all the more amazing by adding flames. As good as that was, Acrobatica won best act with their Toss The Girl routine. Their strength and flexibility were mind-boggling, and the spins and twists of the poor girl breathtaking - part ballet, part gymnastics and all exhilaration.

The Gangsters' Ball is currently in its sixth year of touring, and the organisers still manage to pull off an amazingly entertaining night for a bunch of jaded Sydneysiders who have no doubt seen it all. Bravo.