Adelaide’s favourite German is young, fun and (finally) turning 21, and what a hoot it is to spend an evening in his coming-of-age cabaret. There’s glitz, there’s glamour and, in the best tradition of musical icons, there’s a warts-and-all documentary to obsess over (think Shania Twain without the Lyme disease). Hans first timers may be surprised by the audience age profile of the audience; he’s clearly a beloved fixture at Adelaide Fringe (amazing for one so young) and there are plenty of fans cooling down by waving their actual Hans fans. ‘I didn’t write a script’, he declares and it’s true that audience interaction drives most of the dialogue; it’s cheeky, tongue-in-cheek and clearly just the way they like it.

High-energy, high-camp musical numbers with high production values are interspaced with the documentary, crowd work and costume changes. Kudos to brilliantly named The Lucky Bitches (the dancers) and The Ungrateful Bastards (the band) as well as Hans himself who’s clearly skilled in both accordion and piano. Yep, it’s a lot to fit in and a little frenetic, but Hans displays the energy of an 18 year-old and never falters for a second. All in, good clean cabaret fun with a (sorta) Berlin accent. 

Hans: Young, Fun & 21, Gluttony, until Sunday 23 March, times vary.