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Thank you Marie and Pedro - technical marvels at the Cafe de Paris

  Reminiscing about the making of Black Narcissus Kathleen Tynon said that the lighting team had created all the atmosphere she needed to play her role. Marie Kearney has done the same for the Stage at Cafe de Paris Christmas shows. And Andrea Biondo, aka Pedro, noise-boy, knocked me up a garage version of the Sugar Plum Fairy to dance to. Performing last night in a dreamlike atmosphere of singing pinks and hushed blues took the taste away of the truncated Christmas ballet performance I gave at Asprey's of Bond Street. 
  Playing the Queen of Hearts in an Alice in Wonderland installation, I was already on notice for terrifying children with my bellows of 'Off with his/her head!" And for telling them, when they asked, that the Cheshire Cat (for some reason not featured in the installation) was at the vet's.  At the Mad Hatter's Tea Party I was doing the Croquet Calypso with the Six of Hearts and the string quartet sped up unasked. 
  'Too fucking fast for the fouettes!' I shouted.
  Mr Asprey himself had me walked off the shop floor. 

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