Interview: Bourgeois & Maurice ahead of Pleasure Seekers at Wilton’s Music Hall
Bourgeois and Maurice: Pleasure Seekers | Wilton’s Music Hall | 19-23 September 2023 | From £10.50
So look, we’ve been Bourgeois & Maurice devotees for quite some time, and now that the restraining order has lapsed we were free to pin them down for one of our notoriously high-intensity interrogations ahead of their return to Wilton’s Music Hall this September.
Tell us about your show Pleasure Seekers. How did the show come about?
The show is a celebration of fun, hedonism, existentialism, being your true negative self, polyamory, biscuits and evil babies. It was borne out of a desire to focus on pleasure and partying and being in the same room as other people. It takes a few wild twists on that journey, and asks a couple of big questions, but don’t worry there’s still a lot of silly rhymes.
The show is coming to East End at the Victorian beauty that is Wilton’s Music Hall. What’s it like performing in this legendary historic venue and why should people book to see you at the hall?
The venue is so darn stunning it’s actually damaging to our self esteem – we don’t like to be outshone by bricks and plaster work. But it is a magical place to perform in, so we’ll just have to make our lewks as big as possible to pull focus. Come for the show, stay for the showdown.
What would your advice be to those looking for a life of pleasure?
Don’t do it. We’ve tried it and it’s actually a lot harder than it looks.
Who or what inspires you to make your shows?
Most of our shows are basically us just trying to understand the world, and make each other laugh in the process. If we weren’t writing songs we’d probably spend most of our time whingeing on the internet. You could say that making a theatre show is a better use of our time, but we do sometimes wonder. We hear Troll Farms pay quite well and you get holiday. Has that answered the question?
What are your favourite East London haunts we should explore?
The Glory in Haggerston is a one-stop shop – you can get culture (drag shows), go out (party in the basement) and eat (well, order an extra piece of celery with your Bloody Mary). Then stumble over to Victoria Park and head to the Old English Garden, which is both very relaxing and slightly ominous. It’s slightly hidden away so can feel as though you’ve stumbled through a portal to an empty world. The circular fountain in the centre has a vaguely ‘satanic ritual’ quality, which we like.
Photo Credits: Publicity photos by Peter Thingleton; Production photos by Holly Revell.
I am Joint Editor at To Do List. I like free, cheap & offbeat London, especially: cabaret, art, theatre, pop-ups, eating out, quirky films, museums, day trips, social enterprise & much more.
