Written by and performed by Celine Hispiche
Nobody has ever shone the light or properly acknowledged the female impresario’s of nightlife.
Dating from the 1750’s till the 1970’s, in London establishments located in Soho, Chinatown and Mayfair, and from there to Venice and back, each segment deals with a single private member club owner.
With the help of music, speech, song, a little bawdiness and a lot of humour, Celine Hispiche embodies and recounts the achievements of these extraordinary women, whether hard-bitten Dublin demi-monde, Milanese socialite, or tough-talking Birmingham lesbian. From the fragrantly operatic to the flagrantly exotic, from multi-millionaire to hardened convict, all used their uncanny business sense and extraordinary personalities to launch venues that would attract and hold the attention of leading bohemians, bank-robbing psychopaths and artistic legislators of the day.
As much as any ground-breaking artist or inventor, these brilliant women were pioneers, trend-setters and rule-breakers: the booze-soaked catalysts of change. They rubbed shoulders - and other body parts - with celebrities as varied as Evelyn Waugh, Tallulah Bankhead and Barbara Cartland. They welcomed artists like Francis Bacon, pace-setting Vorticist’s, and sober post-impressionist Camden Town Group artists into their clubs. And left their mark, and many a sore head on the European capitals they enlivened and on which they emblazoned their unique mark.
These fiery figure heads glided their ships through storms of legal battles, licensing laws, envy and fast growing competitors.
Teresa Cornelys 1723 - 1797
It is clearly evident the Italian influence in the early 1800’s on London’s nightlife. The Masquerades and balls were just but a mere taste of what was to unfold in the dark hours of Carlyle House under the watchful eye of Teresa Cornelys the Empress of Pleasure.
Frida Strindberg 1872 - 1943
Frieda Strindberg originally from Vienna, prior to her London club The Cave of The Golden Calf opened the first cabaret club in Berlin.
Marchesa Luisa Casati 1881 - 1957
Party hostess extraordinaire. Adorning live snakes as necklaces, mother of pearl high heels and two cheetahs on diamond leashes.
Kate Meyrick 1875 - 1933
The Dubliner who came to London and transformed herself into The Queen of Clubs throughout the West End.
Muriel Belcher 1908 - 1979
Artist model and the founder of The Colony Room in Soho. Sharp tongued and always held court, perched at the end of the bar.
Lady Edith Foxwell 1918 - 1996
The Queen of London Cafe Society and then onto the Disco Dowager when she took over the Embassy Club in Mayfair in the early 1980’s
The performance takes the audience through the doors of these decadent clubs. With witty monologues and hand tailored songs performed by Celine.