As the curtain rises on the charming Ambre-Cashmere family, everyone is talking simultaneously on stage — there are grunts, witty asides, chuckles, humming…and whispers delivered with a hissssss; no one is willing to ease up or shut up. We meet happy Lady Mandarin, handsome/smooth-talking General Pepper, the self-effacing Misses Violet and Iris, and bitter Mrs. Lemon, the cook (hissssss!) who brings in a tray full of tiny cups filled with hot cocoa. Chilly Cousin Clove attempts to stifle the conversation as Mr. Tonka Bean steps in to try and add sweetness and reason to the proceedings; but neither Clove nor Tonka Bean are a match for loud-mouthed / hard-drinking “Patch” who loves nothing more than creating a scene. Cashmeran (aka “CC”) — as the other cast members’ voices falter — gets the final, reassuring (and long-winded) speech. The End.

Parfums de Nicolaï Ambre Cashmere Intense’s¹ initial cacophony is not unpleasant…it’s attention grabbing…

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