Sick beats at ‘Six’

In fact, Marlow and Moss initially created the show as students at Cambridge University as an entry for the comedy-centric Edinburgh Fringe Festival. As one might expect, their lyrical jokes are both scholarly and sophomoric (Thoroughly researched historical characters; overworked sexual double-entendres).

It’s easy to imagine a slimmed down version of this show as a classic “Saturday Night Live” segment (John Mulaney’s Sondheim spoofs come to mind); and it’s an impressive calling card for its creators. But a full-fledged Broadway show it is not.

Yes, it’s been luxed up with production values far beyond those of its frugal Scottish debut. Costume designer Gabriella Slade has fashioned gleaming metallic mini-skirts, chain-link lingerie and stompsational boots that evoke “Game of Thrones” by way of Cher; the light- ing (Tim Deiling) and set (Emma Bailey) are as slick as a K-Pop concert.

Orchestrator Tom Curran has fleshed out the songs with sonic whirligigs that draw on everything from EDM to “Greensleeves” (once rumored to be written by Henry VIII in honor of Ann Boleyn; in the license-free public domain); and choreographer Carrie-Anne Ingrouille is heroically inventive within the show’s narrow musical palette and requisite sextet of characters on stage at all times.

Profit vs. promise

Yet “Six” still feels like a stretched-out sketch. It’s skimpy even within 80 intermission-less minutes that include an overlong intro number and a rah-rah reprise finale/pep rally.

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1895. You can almost feel the history. After dinner we took the Metro to The Moxy Hotel which hosts a weekly “Oh My Gay” Sunday tea dance. The DJ leans heavily on old school ’70s and ’80s disco hits.

Museums and swanky lodging

The next day, we visited to the Museum of Contemporary Design and Applied Arts and had lunch at Café de Grancy, followed by a guided tour of the city. With just a bit of time to recharge, we enjoyed dinner at Brasserie de Montbenon.

The next morning, we visited the Olympic Museum, then hopped a train for a day trip to Bern. Our first stop was a delightful lunch at the Restaurant Falken with Nik Eugster, who explained plans for the EuroGames taking place in Bern in July.

After lunch, we headed for a guided tour of a unique exhibit at the Natural Historic Museum of Bern. “Queer – Diversity is in our nature” showing how “normal” the gender spectrum can be. Given the atmosphere in the U.S. now, it was a joy to see children as young at five years old being taken through the exhibit by their parents.

by Rick Karlin

Switzerland is known for many things; Heidi, fondue, cuckoo clocks, and skiing. It also has a strong LGBTQ community. Believe it or not, all these things coalesce in Arosa Gay Ski Week in January. The annual gathering is very popular in Switzerland, but mostly unheard of outside of the country, even among skiers.

Switzerland’s tourism department recently welcomed a group of American travel writers to promote LGBTQ tourism in Switzerland, as well as Arosa’s Gay Ski Week. In addition to Arosa ski week, we took tours of Lausanne, Bern, and Zurich, all the while staying at five-star hotels and dining at top-rated restaurants.

We hopped on a train to Lausanne and thanks to the city’s efficient Metro system, we barely had to step outside until we came to the stop closest to our hotel, the Lausanne Palace. A grande dame of a building, it first opened in 1915 and whispers old world luxury. Rooms are large and charming, especially for an older hotel. After we checked in, we had an hour or so to settle into our rooms and enjoy the stunning views of the sun setting across the lake in France (Evian), with more mountains in the distance.

A short walk along the lakefront led us to La Couronne d’Or, a landmark cafe in the city since

We hopped the train back to Lausanne, where we picked up our luggage and transferred to another train to Zurich. A two-hour train ride gave us an opportunity to rest in our first-class car. Our Zurich home was the five-star Dolder Grand, perched on a mountain ledge on the edge of the city. A short walk from the train brought us to the funicular (a cross between a tram and an escalator), which took us up the mountain to the elegant hotel. With its elevated location, it provides magnificent views over Zurich, the lake, and the Alps. It’s one of Zurich’s

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