It has been described as "Cirque du Soleil for adults".
The Butler comes to the Otago Festival of the Arts table tonight and it promises to be a feast of fun.
"It's very witty and funny and a little bit raunchy.
"Well, quite a bit raunchy, really," circus performer Skye Broberg said yesterday.
"Basically, it's from the butler's perspective after holding countless numbers of dinner parties and the way people revert to their animalistic nature after a few drinks.
"It's a commentary on etiquette and social behaviour that we humans let slip every now and again.
"It's very funny and witty and visual.
"Our characters in the show range somewhere between the carnal to the show-pony.
"Humans who, ultimately, are animals trying to either fit or flout the rules."
"We use our skills such as acting, aerials, acrobatics, mime, singing and musical abilities to create funny and sometimes bizarre situations.
It's an energetic show that is continually evolving.
As a cast member you are kept stimulated and creatively inspired.
"We are not just performers, but also the riggers, the administration, the costume and set designers and constructors.
"We try and keep it all in-house.
"I've noticed this type of multi-tasking is rarely seen outside of New Zealand these days."
Broberg said the cast brought different skills and abilities to the table, which meant that if one person was taken out the story would have to be altered. She said they were used to dealing with ongoing updates and improvements, so changes could be made, but it would be "sad and difficult" to lose someone.
"We are physically very fit and have been lucky that there haven't been any major injuries.
"Recently, during our London run, one cast member cut his head open in the first half, but, with the addition of a stylish head scarf, he was able to continue the show."
The close-knit cast are graduates of the Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology's CircoArts school and now perform with the Loons Circus Theatre Company.
"Although we are all very different individuals, we do consider ourself a family of sorts.
"We have been through a lot together and seen each other grow and develop our performance skills over the years," Broberg says.
"There has definitely been financial sacrifice in getting The Butler to the stage it's at now, but we all believe in what we are doing and have faith that this is an investment in the show, the company and each other."
Between performances of The Butler, the cast did private parties, corporate events, festivals, busking, quiz nights, cabarets, workshops and acting work, she said.
"We're really excited about doing it here in Dunedin.
We've only just got back from London, so it's going to be amazing.
"We were very happy with the reception we got from the Londoners.
"We had people coming back two and three times to see the show. They were wonderful.
"And it was great to gain another perspective on the show and being able to take it up yet another notch in quality."
The Butler came about after director Mike Friend was tasked with creating a play to showcase the CircoArts school.
Columnist Joe Bennett, who wrote the dialogue for the play, said The Butler addressed "the gulf between public and private behaviour".
"When Mike Friend first conceived the show he would spend a day devising the cast, then in the evening he and I would take our dogs out in the dark and he'd tell me what he'd done and I'd go home and write something to fit it, more or less.
"Next day he'd adapt the scene to fit the words.
"Everything was up for alteration all the time and continues to be so.
"The show has gone through at least four major revisions and countless minor ones.
"It's an evolving thing. And it keeps getting better," he said.
"The greatest pleasure has been hearing audiences roar and seeing them emerge grinning like chimps.
"The second greatest has been watching the cast grow into a company."
• The Butler is on at 8pm today and tomorrow in the Regent Theatre.
