Circus, cabaret, vaudeville and more: The festival to make you Blysh

Wales Millennium Centre’s annual festival of alternative arts and entertainment Blysh could have been created for the Cardiff-based dance group, the Kitsch Sync Collective.

Rosalind Haf Brooks, Kylie Ann Smith and Kim Noble joined forces because they shared an interest in making work that’s off the wall and diverse.

“As performers we share similar skills, not to mention we all have a great time working together,” says Brooks.

A dance training background, which includes ballet, tap, jazz and contemporary dance, all feeds into the trio’s work.

For this year’s Blysh Festival there are two new works commissioned by Coreo Cymru, Wales’ creative producer for dance. With work full of surprises it would be wrong to ruin the anticipation but in VESPAcades they tell us to keep a look out for some leather clad ladies on scooters and that the Hells Angels had better watch out.

The trio then transform into the Kitsch Sync Collective’s Dating Agency for Last Chance Romance; an interactive and comedic dance theatre performance which fuses swing dance, toe-tapping tunes, dating booths and, of course, love.

All in all we are promised a cabaret of surreal characters, quirky choreography, toe-tapping tunes, a dressing-up box bursting with vintage clobber and a whirlwind evening of entertainment.

Festival-goers can catch the trio as zippy roller skating hairdressers in and around the Spiegeltent tonight at 7.15pm and on Sunday at 2pm and 7pm. The two new commissions are set to be performed on August 2, 6.30pm; August 3, at 3.15pm and 6pm and August 4, at 3.15pm and 5.45pm.

Given their eclectic style, the trio work on an array of diverse projects. Last weekend they performed an outdoor piece called Pseudo Syncro – a comedy dance performance inspired by Busby Berkeley – and other projects have included a sell-out cabaret-inspired show Private Eye Detective, electro-swing hop dance classes and even a surprise appearance as their alter-ego the Lampshade Ladies on BBC Two’s Have I Got News for You.

While the trio forms the heart of the Kitsch Sync Collective they don’t always appear as a threesome – they often work with musicians, costume designers, and even a welder as part of the collective that promises one thing for their audiences: the unexpected.

While there is always a retro element to their work they are at pains to point out that their work is taken from the past and given a contemporary twist.

Perhaps not surprisingly for a group that loves the fun of entertaining audiences with curiously quirky dance, they also have a spontaneous edge. “We enjoy improvising and experimenting with quirky retro props in the rehearsal room, such as space hoppers, scooters and roller skates. Vintage fashion trends and playing with costume design is also a huge influence on creating quirky characters for our shows,” says Noble. “We create some amazing challenges for ourselves – I never thought I would know how to be a dancing soldier on a space hopper or to tap dance whilst jumping on a skipping rope.”

FESTIVAL PICKS

View gallery

Ceilidh Liberation Front

When? Today – 8pm

Where? Spiegeltent, Cardiff Bay (Age Restriction: 18+)

What? Dance, skip and fling yourself across the dance floor with this unique brand of cabaret-infused Ceilidh. So grab your dancing shoes, bring along your mates and pop over for a wild night of organised chaos.

Tickets: £6

Blysh Speakeasy

When? Tomorrow and Sunday – 7.30pm

Where? Spiegeltent, Cardiff Bay (Age Restriction: 18+)

What? The Spiegeltent will host three of Britain’s most prolific cabaret acts for an unashamedly vice-filled evening of cabaret and live music. With Bourgeois Maurice, Frisky Mannish and David Hoyle.

Tickets: £12

The Incredible Hula Boy

When? Sunday – 3pm, 6pm

Where? Glanfa Stage, Wales Millennium Centre

What? Combining his background in acrobatics with a well-honed skill in hula-hooping, Craig The Incredible Hula Boy performs a slick, high energy act.

Tickets? Free

Big Mac’s Wholly Soul Band

When? July 22 23 – 6.15pm

Where? Glanfa Stage, Wales Millennium Centre

What? Big Mac’s Wholly Soul Band bring together an authentic blend of sultry soul and electrifying rock ‘n’ roll.

Tickets: Free

Kitsch Sync Dance Workshop

When? July 23 – 10.30am

Where? Spiegeltent, Cardiff Bay

What? Pop over to the Spiegeltent and learn how to dance your socks off electro swing hop style with Kitsch Sync.

Tickets: Free but ticketed

Briefs

When? July 24 to 27 – 8pm

Where? Spiegeltent, Cardiff Bay (Age Restriction: 18+)

What? Briefs return to Cardiff to unleash the UK première of their new show, The Second Coming. Reinventing vaudeville and circus, dance and clowning, Briefs slam together a beef-caked and disorderly line-up of Australia’s finest performers.

Tickets: £12

Bright Light Bright Light

When? July 24 25 – 10pm

Where? Spiegeltent, Cardiff Bay (Age Restriction: 18+)

What? Twinkling electro-pop, killer choruses and nostalgically-familiar ‘90s inspired vibes. Bright Light Bright Light, aka Neath’s Rod Thomas, fuses a love of classic songwriting with a love for the dancefloor.

Tickets: £6* (free with tickets to Briefs on the same day)

Brat Kids Carnival

When? July 26 27 – 3pm

Where? Spiegeltent, Cardiff Bay (Age Guidance: 4+)

What? Calling all young theatregoers with a taste for wild circus skills, loud music, ridiculous acts and eye-popping birthday party tricks let Australia’s finest circus artists and mischief-makers show you the ropes..

Tickets: £6

Zen Hussies

When? July 27 – 1.15pm

Where? Glanfa Stage, Wales Millennium Centre

What? Undisputed masters of party jazz, Zen Hussies will blow you away with their inimitable punked-up swing and ska sound.

Tickets: Free

Magmanus

When? July 27 – 2.45pm, 5.45pm; July 28 – 1.45pm 4.30pm

Where? Outside the Wales millennium Centre

What? Witness a brilliant acrobat and loveable juggler who fuse together high-flying acrobatics with stomach-turning comedy.

Tickets: Free

Mario, Queen of the Circus

When? July 27 – 5pm; July 28 – 2.30pm

Where? Outside the Wales millennium Centre

What? This latin lothario’s unique mix of circus art and sex appeal can only find release with the arena-rocking anthems and daring stage costumes of his idol, Freddie Mercury.

Tickets: Free

Hot Club Gallois

When? July 28 – 3.30pm, 6pm

Where? Glanfa Stage, Wales Millennium Centre

What? Hot Club Gallois perform a passionate mix of traditional gypsy music and sultry jazz.

Tickets: Free

Mary Bijou: Hitch

When? July 31 to August 3 – 8pm (Doors at 7.30pm)

Where? Spiegeltent, Cardiff Bay (Age Restriction: 18+)

What? Created especially for Blysh, this thrilling adventure into the dark place of cabaret’s psyche takes you into the extraordinary mind of Alfred Hitchcock. Fancy dress is optional but highly recommended.

Tickets: £12

Le Navet Bête

When? August 2 – 7pm; August 3 – 3.45pm, 6.30pm

Where? Outside the Wales Millennium Centre

What? Join an international touring troupe of clowns on a spectacular journey to the end of the rainbow.

Tickets: Free

The Whale

When? August 3 4 – 1pm-3.30pm, 4.30pm-7pm

Where? Outside the Wales Millennium Centre

What? Prepare to dive into the jaws of a giant silver whale to be serenaded by a lovesick submariner.

Tickets: Free

Mattress