Comedy: Cabaret showdown hits the stage

Two of the best cabarets acts in Poland, Ani Mru Mru (figurative translation: Not a Peep) and Kabaret Moralnego Niepokoju (Moral Anxiety Cabaret), are to go head-to-head in a 2.5-hour, Wild West style duel at Warsaw's Sala Kongresowa on April 14.

The competition, called "High noon. Ani Mru Mru vs Kabaret Moralnego Niepokoju," is loosely based on the US film "High noon" and a comedic performance of the same name which the two comedy groups filmed last year for DVD release. The new production will depict each comedy group taking turns to give a performance in a given category, each trying to out do the other.

Despite the two cabaret groups being natural enemies - and on the surface the battle seems to support this - the duel in fact comes about as a result of love, not war. "The reason we have come up with such a show is simple - we really like each other," said Marcin Wójcik, the founder of the Ani Mru Mru cabaret.

"We wanted to take advantage of our friendship, create a joint project and play together. However, we did not want [the friendship] to look boring, so we have invented a fight," he told WBJ.

The cabaret groups will now hold 11 concerts around Poland. Fans of the groups need not worry that only new material will be performed, as the event will also include some of the cabarets' best-known acts. "Not all of the performances will be in a Western theme. In several competitions, there is room to show our best-known shows," Wójcik told WBJ.

For more information, log on the theater groups' web pages: www.animrumru.art.pl and kmn.k2.pl. The Warsaw performance will take place at Sala Kongresowa on April 14 at 7 pm. Polish-language only