POPULAR entertainment couple, Aaron McIlroy and Lisa Bobbert, are set to hit the stage with their brand new musical comedy show The Seven Deadly Sins.
Bobbert said they started with the idea last year.
“We are always looking to do something new. Our comedy is very character-driven. It comes through the characters rather than the gags.”
Some of McIlroy and Bobbert’s characters are audience favourites and a hit at all their shows. That said, Bobbert explained this new show will mainly have new “faces”.
“We find that if we don’t do certain characters in our shows people get upset. For example Aaron’s character ‘Vijay’ is always in demand… he makes an appearance in The Seven Deadly Sins but the rest are all new,” she explained.
Although the duo often work together on stage or for corporate work – as well as on separate projects – The Seven Deadly Sins is their first brand new show together in three years since the hit Reality Bites.
“In The Seven Deadly Sins we’ll look at lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy and pride differently. All the characters will describe a sin but it’s almost like presenting them with a twist,” said Bobbert.
She said the show will include some satirical visual pieces and their own rendition of popular songs like Shaggy’s Hey, Sexy Lady, Britney Spears’s Toxic, and Daft Punk’s Get Lucky.
The show – a mix of stand-up and sketch comedy and music – is directed by the renowned Steven Stead.
“When we first spoke to Steven he had other commitments but something then fell away and we were so grateful! Because you really need a good director. It’s hard to look at yourself from the outside, having that outside eye is so important,” Bobbert explained.
The couple also consulted with Sue Monteregge as co-writer, which Bobbert said is always a perfect fit with their team.
“We’ve worked with Sue so often and we are really all on the same wavelength. The good thing about working with Sue is that she knows us and she pushes us.”
Other well-known practitioners working on the production are choreographer David Gouldie, and stylists Kevin Ellis and Gareth Greaves – among others.
“This is really going to be one people will enjoy. We’ve tweaked the script during early rehearsals and as of yesterday we worked on getting it on to the stage. We’ve laughed so much with this one, the audience is going to enjoy it,” said Bobbert who, with McIlroy, has brought hit shows like Sex Bugs and Rock ’n Roll, and Defending the Planet to the stage.
• The Seven Deadly Sins runs at the Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre from February 6 to March 9. Shows are at 7.30pm Tuesdays to Saturdays and at 6pm on Sundays. Tickets are R140 (R80 for the preview on February 6). Booking is through Computicket.