Cheeky chappies Steven Worbey and Kevin Farrell whisked us on a rapid rollercoaster-ride of pianistic wizardry, spiced with kaleidoscopic colours and whirlwinds of sounds and enticed by cheery chatter and chirpy charm.
The boys, brightly clad in chequered shirts and silk waistcoats, interjected their piano acrobatics with a friendly style of witty stand-up, craftily flicking between one and other with fast interplay – tricks property only of schooled performance partners – bouncing between their jokes like a comic game of tennis.
Jumping onto stage with a confident wham, they grabbed their audience from the first millisecond. Bringing us in closer with occasional interaction, our attention was assured. Then came the music, which took centre-stage throughout the show, enhanced, not distracted from, by comic interspersions.
Launching into the ride with an ear-grabbing Sabre Dance by Khachaturian, the journey continued with Mozart’s Sonata in C, which crashed into Joplin’s The Entertainer and smashed into Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody no. 2.
En route, we were serenaded with two romantic interludes – Schubert’s Ave Maria, based upon Bach’s Prelude no. 1 in C, and Coldplay. These two enchantments conjured up some heart-warming shade between the sprightly lightening and flashy fireworks.
We were transfixed as hands swapped, jumped and hopped, fingers skipped, mixed and flicked, pianists played up, down, inside and under. After edging forwards, gasping for a closer look, we then got it, as the four-hand virtuosity displayed itself beamingly on a massive cinema screen.
Next stop, and with many a loop-the-loop, was a cheeky treat 24 Deviations on a Caprice, the boys’ own original masterpiece, their set of variations of Paganini’s A minor theme. This dazzling collection of racy rhythms, twinkly timbres and plinky pyrotechnics raced bracingly through 24 contrasting styles.
Unsurprisingly, the terrific two have been begged back by popular demand, as their jaw-dropping show is awarded a small string of extra performances, the first of which commences on Saturday evening at the later time of 9pm.
Book in now, fasten your seatbelts and brace yourselves for a fast-rolling, finger-flashing piano-ride!
Runs until Thursday 15 August, 2.45pm. Extra shows now scheduled in addition to the original run.
Tickets £10, Concessions £9.