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'The Chaser's Age Of Terror Variety Hour
Thebarton Theatre
Wed 14 May
Season closed
 When The Chaser team's latest venture was first announced, no one really knew what to expect. Was it a live show of the 'War On Everything'? Did it mean the end of television for the ABC's dark knights of pop culture? As for me, the last thing I expected was a truly refreshing, original and thoroughly entertaining night at the Thebby - and it seems the boys were out to prove the cynics wrong.
The 'Age Of Terror Variety Hour' can't have come at a better time for the Chaser team. Riding on their spectacular wave of APEC media coverage, not to mention just about every current affairs program regularly tut-tutting the cheeky chums; their popularity seems to be growing by the day. Love them or loathe them, pretty much everyone is talking about what they'll get up to next.
What really surprised me about me about the 'Age Of Terror' was how the guys seemed so comfortable in the theatre. A lot of time was spent individually on stage - and this is where Chas in particular really shone. I must admit that sometimes on the TV show, Chas reminds me of a slightly over-enthusiastic little brother tagging along with the big boys, but his vivacious personality was perfect for the large auditorium and he scored huge applause from the audience.
Andrew once again proved his showmanship from behind the piano, but he wasn't the only one who showed off his musical ability throughout the night. The whole cast took part in hugely entertaining song-and-dance numbers, where Julian in particularly demonstrated his strong on-stage sparkle and amazed the crowd with his surprisingly impressive vocal chords. Chris Taylor absence was shortly missed as Dominic Knight, who usually stays behind-the-scenes in 'War On Everything', sang about his body-hair woes to the hysterical audience.
The gags were excellent and fresh, and although the range of subject matter was generally familiar, the delivery and performance was so strong that no one could argue lack of originality. The use of multimedia was integrated so perfectly, you'd think they invented the concept; while topics covered included politics, myspace, and a hilarious send up of an Al-Qaeda business meeting. Slightly bolder topics were covered by way of a rather unflattering imitation of Adelaide's Hilltop Hoods, Andrew's crude impersonation of Tom Cruise and Chas's well-received experimental analysis of foul men who cruise adult matchmaker.
The 'Age Of Terror Variety Hour' is exactly what you wished the 'War On Everything' was every week. The Chaser team seems to have benefited massively from the change of scenery and I look forward to their return to the small screen in the near future; refreshed, inspired and in the words of Julian Morrow, ready to "represent the decline of civilisation" once again.
Bianca Weiler
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