Cabaret Fringe
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Edition 24 June 2011 Sapphire Snow Appearing in A Deliciously Dark Burlesque at the Cabaret Fringe 2 MEET LEO SAYER 6 CABERET FRINGE FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHTS 14 AMERICAN APPAREL PROFILE 28 HUMAN RIGHTS FILM AND ARTS FESTIVAL PROFILE Leo Sayer ‘Fame’, Leo Sayer’s first manager Adam Faith once quipped, ‘is being popular from six to 60.’ The diminutive Englishman, who now calls Sydney home, reckons under that definition he is indeed famous. As an example, his little remembered single from 1983 Orchard Road (it got to only #27 on Australian charts upon release) was the most played song on BBC Radio 2 last year. ‘The radio jocks just love these songs’ Leo says as he tries to explain the evergreen nature of his music. ‘Music from the 70s has survived because it plays well on radio. The music just grooves, it’s great to dance to.’ Admitting he never thought it would all be like this, Sayer compares his songs to having children - ‘you just can’t control the outcomes as they evolve.’ This dance aspect is what he believes has kept giving his 70s and 80s tunes new lives with younger generations. ‘One kid came up to me the other day and said ‘Leo, you are such a groovy fucker’ which was a bit of a shock given I am about to turn 63!’ Reflecting on the days before success really kicked in, Sayer says the most exciting moments were before the applause really set in. ‘With Adam Faith as my mentor, we just kept knocking on doors. There were so many times when we just got lucky with who was there at the time or this or that introduction. It was amazing. 2 Adelaide’s Own and Only On-line Street Mag Adelaide’s Own and Only On-line Street Mag 3 PROFILE ‘Hearing the results of all that work for the first time on radio was great. Then, you hone your craft and become confident. But the biggest moment is when you are on the precipice of success, when it becomes all about you.’ Perhaps the biggest step forward came in 1969, when Leo, then still Gerry, met Adam Faith at a talent contest in 1969 and together they became a song writer and production partnership that lasted 30 years, ending only a few years before Faith died early last decade. Faith was a successful song writing machine in the 1960s, the first UK artist to lodge his initial seven hits in the top 5. In the 1970’s he turned to theatre, financial journalism and managing Leo, whose career would take a similar path to his own of twenty years previous. Whereas Faith’s music died, Leo’s has been sustained on radio, in remixes and with live performance Leo says it gets ‘another life.’ This year he is touring widely, recording a new album with his Sydney based band and, for Adelaide audiences, most importantly coming to the Cabaret Festival for four shows from 16th June. www.leosayer.com www.adelaidecabaretfestival.com.au See and hear Leo’s Orchard Road on this YouTube clip 4 Adelaide’s Own and Only On-line Street Mag Luna Eclipse performing in A Deliciously Dark Burlesque at the Cabaret Fringe Image By Harry Pearce Adelaide’s Own and Only On-line Street Mag 5 PREVIEW Cabaret Fringe – Til 26th June www.cabaretfringefestival.com The Cabaret Fringe Festival is now well established, with 2011 being its fourth year as an accompaniment to the Cabaret Festival. Continuing to grow, this year’s festival boasts an impressive fifty-eight shows over four weeks. While the home of the Cabaret Fringe, La Bohème, still hosts many of these acts, they are also spread out across ten other city venues, including the reinvented Tuxedo Cat within the old Elektra Building on King William Street, which proved to be so popular at this year’s Adelaide Fringe festival. The Cabaret Fringe is an open access festival, with everybody welcome to produce their own show and register to be a part of it. As always, there is a diverse mix of entertainment on offer, with both local and interstate acts included in the programme. This year Isaac Lomman Gives there is also a string of shows which have a very Us Comedy Hypnosis international and multi-cultural flavour to them. Golonka and Tzigane are two local bands, presenting a double bill at Nexus Cabaret on the penultimate night (Saturday June 25th) of the festival. They offer something a bit different from the usual local fare, with their sound heavily influenced by European Gypsy music. Golonka is a five piece group, which has been on the Adelaide scene for several years, performing both headline and support shows, and are well known for giving performances full of fun Golonka & Tzigane and energy. Tzigane is a more recently formed three 25th June at Nexus 6 Adelaide’s Own and Only On-line Street Mag Adelaide’s Own and Only On-line Street Mag 7 PREVIEW piece, and while their music is also influenced by Eastern Europe it promises added flavours of South America. Together they will undoubtedly create a unique and entertaining evening of song. Also on at Nexus Cabaret is the African comedy cabaret show Akuna Matata (No Problems). This will be presented as part of Refugee Week, with three performances from June 23rd. In addition to several short skits, this show includes original music, dancing and comedy and is designed to be an upbeat evening out with lots of laughter and enjoyment for everyone. Akuna Matata 23- 26 June at Nexus While the pressure of producing one show would be enough stress for most people, Fred Fudara exhibits his range and adaptability by presenting two complimentary productions. Having delighted audiences with his repertoire of French songs during his regular gigs at La Bohème, as well as local events such as the French Festival, he now shows that his talent also extends to Portuguese. His new show Come Fly With Me to Rio de Janeiro is on Saturday nights at Saldechin, until the 18th of June, and is one of a handful of free shows throughout the festival. These are just a few of the great shows still to come as the wonderful Cabaret Fringe Festival once again fills the city’s smaller, alternative performance spaces with quality entertainment. Miriam Keane A Modest Exhibit by Charles Sanders 8 Adelaide’s Own and Only On-line Street Mag Flavella L’Amour performing in A Doll’s House At The Cabaret Fringe Adelaide’s Own and Only On-line Street Mag 9 FEATURE The Garden of Earthly Delights Each year for the Adelaide Fringe Festival Rymill Park becomes alive with ‘the Garden’, or more fully, the Garden of Unearthly Delights. This year it was estimated that around 800,000 revellers attended there over its 32 days. What is less well known is how the Garden got its name and the weird imagery associated with it came about. The basis of it all is a painting by the 15-16th century Dutch artist Hieronymus Bosch entitled The Garden of Earthly Delights (pictured). Bosch’s (c1450 – 1516) work is known for its use of fantastic imagery to illustrate moral and religious concepts and narratives. So what is the Garden of Earthly Delights all about? Painted between1503-4 the enigmatic piece displays complex symbolism and imagery that has been interpreted in many ways. The left panel is the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve and their creator towards its base. The central panel is a broad panorama of sexually engaged nude figures, fantastical animals, oversized fruit and hybrid stone formations. While the right panel is a hell-scape (close up also pictured) portraying the torments of damnation. FEATURE Art historians and critics frequently interpret the painting as a warning on the perils of life’s temptations and interestingly conclude that the ultimate meaning of the painting is to stay away from earthly temptations. However, the intricacy of its symbolism, particularly that of the central panel which includes alchemical, astrological, heretical, sub conscious and folkloric imagery has led to a wide range of scholarly interpretations over the centuries. 20th and 21st century art historians remain divided as to whether the triptych’s central panel is a moral warning or a panorama of paradise lost. Famously Jim Morrison of the Doors made a point of visiting the painting when he was travelling through Madrid, where it is housed. Given the excesses of his life, no doubt he saw some metaphors for his own existence which ended not long after. Interest in Bosch’s quaint works have survived over the years thanks to the unique takes on the moral dilemma of life but also because he has become regarded as the father of the 20th century art movement ‘surrealism’, itself based in part on the psychoanalytical work of Sigmund Freud and his like. Certainly many of the ideas brought to life by Salvador Dali, one of the more famous surrealists, can be seen in Bosch’s paintings, including The Garden of Earthly Delights. So next year, as you wonder around the Garden of Unearthly Delights you can reflect on the some of the weird imagery that graces the area and better understand where it comes from and that it is not just the result of a long night out by either or both of you or the artists involved. Socratos PROFILE Emily Davis “It’s been a long time between drinks,” says Emily Davis, vaguely distracted as her newly acquired kitten, Captain Meow, paws in a decidedly communist fashion at her chair.