It all started like such a benign evening. The relatively short entrance queue, the speedy table service, speedily taken G&Ts and the clandestine nudges and chuckles when one poor sucker made the ill-informed decision to check his coat into 900 capacity Proud’s individually staffed cloakroom… The only flashpoint came when casual flirting with the girls on the door turned ugly after they accused us of working for ‘Flaunt’ Magazine (“seriously, who the f*ck is that?!”… is what they were saying to us).

And then this happened:

Ok, so maybe that didn’t happen straight away. Perhaps a little background wouldn’t go amiss.

A couple of weeks ago, the FAULT team were invited to an evening of drinks, dinner and debauchery at the Proud Kitchen in Camden. Naturally, we were loathe to decline such a pleasant invitation and rocked up at 8:30ish on the dotish to be greeted by a fairly genteel sight:

Proud have decorated their dining area sumptuously (although that charming white scarf is mine, by the way; hands off), stylishly and suitably decadently for a night that appeals equally to an amusingly diverse set of people, judging by the crowd. As mentioned above, table service is sharp but unobtrusive and, as we walked in before the show, the ambience was perfectly balanced between relaxed and expectant.

After ordering starters, we found ourselves salivating after just 10minutes. However, although the foodies amongst you won’t be disappointed, the main cause for expectation was more on-stage than a la carte.

Step forward Roxy Velvet, Empress Stah et al. Frankly, the show had a bit of everything. For the Tex Avery Wolf-esque characters, the show had scintillating skin-deep performances. For those after a 1930s style ‘jolly good show’, artful performances, great music and the cheap comedy masterclass that is Frank Sanazi.

Frank’s style is not high culture. It’s about as subtle and refined as the Dad’s Army theme tune – even though his performance draws on material from the absolute opposite standpoint (which *spoiler alert* might go some way to explaining the first photo above). But it is extremely funny, to the point where, despite the audiences’ ogling of many a scantily clad female (and one male) performer, by all accounts ol’ Frankie was the only cast member to take an audience member home on the night. Frank, dear boy, we salute you. Wait, not like that…

Rather than continue to describe the rest of the evening’s attractions, we will showcase a selection of them below in more visual form. I’ll sign off with a hearty recommendation, however, that you go to Proud as soon as humanly possible for an exceptional meal, some pleasantly affordable cocktails and some delightfully unattainable tail.

  

 

 

 

All images copyright Charles Conway. Please ask permission from FAULT before use.