Under Our Wing Award winner

Each year we give an award to an emerging cabaret performer who in our opinion deserves much more recognition than they are currently receiving.

The award has gained much credibility over the years after several of its little known (at that point) recipients – including Tim Minchin – achieved significant career success.

We’re thrilled to announce that the 2009 winner – chosen from a very high standard of possible candidates – is Tom Dickins.

Tom first came to our attention at the 2007 Edinburgh Fringe Festival when he invited us to hear him sing his newly written songs. We instantly saw the potential for his voice and stories to fit perfectly into the cabaret genre.

Amanda Palmer from the Dresdon Dolls was also at that invitation-only showcase and she too recognised his potential, writing that Tom has “the velvety yet bittersweet voice of an angel, only recently fallen from grace.”

Returning to Australia, Tom won the Professional Development Award at the inaugural Short Sweet+Cabaret in July 2008 for his 10-minute cabaret piece “Cab-O-Rage”, which entitled him to course entry to Play Right Productions’ rigorous cabaret course.

In February 2009 Amanda Palmer proved she meant what she wrote when she invited Tom to perform with her at one of The Butterfly Club’s infamous ‘secret shows’.

He returns to the stage as The Butterfly Club’s headline performer for the 2009 Melbourne Fringe Festival. His exciting new show ‘Where Was I’ runs for the full three weeks of the Festival.

>> dates: Thursday 24 September to Sunday 11 October (12 performances Thurs to Sun)
>> times: 9.00 pm Thurs – Sats, 8.00 pm Sundays
>> preview week ticket price: $15
>> bookings: www.thebutterflyclub.com or www.melbournefringe.com.au
>> listen to Tom: www.myspace.com/tomdickins

Review of 'Loveline the Cabaret'

Note: this show has been extended to tonight (Sat) at 10.30 pm and Wed 8 July at 8.00 pm. We can NOT extend beyond this.

29 Jun 2009
Catherine Kladakis - writing for neoskosmos.com

Cabaret is a ‘loveline’ for Melanie Velissaris, quite literally. The 22-year-old Monash University arts graduate, just finished performing in her self-written show, Loveline- the Cabaret.

The comedy, about three girls unlucky in love who call a telephone helpline out of desperation is something that Velissaris had dreamed of creating upon graduation.

“It’s an idea that me and two friends, Tineke Sibbel and Sophie Weiss came up with whilst we were at uni,” she said to Neos Kosmos English Edition (NKEE).

“A lot of people can relate to the girl who is unlucky in love and so many chick flicks have been made about this topic, but our show was not totally pessimistic.

“We aimed to bring a lot of humour to it and also portray it from a young person’s point of view.”

The girls performed in a swanky little cabaret space at the Butterfly Club. Although the stage was small, they worked the room well.

Such was their stagecraft the props they used to transform the set from a house, to a church, and even to a toilet was an added extra.

Velissaris played a young woman who sobbed and sung about her misfortunes in love whilst wrapping herself in toilet paper as she drowned her miseries down the imaginary toilet.

Each of the girls had their own love hang-ups - Velissaris as the older sister is single, Sibbel is the ultimate girlfriend doormat, and Weiss as the religious matchmaker whose good deeds only put her in “relationshit.”

The girls seamlessly alternated between characters and between the present and the past.

The most memorable moment of the show was Weiss’ ‘Fat-Pizza’ style impersonation of Sibbel’s character’s ex-boyfriend. “Babe, can you do me a favour? Can you shave my back hair later?”

Whilst Weiss had the most expressive of faces, Velissaris starred with her powerful and sweet voice.

When asked whether the story line had any truth to it, Velissaris laughed and said that it was totally imaginary.

“I’m quite opposite to the character I played who is quite hopeless and needs all the help she can get. As a European family we are quite close knit and I feel supported all the time by my parents.”

Both her parents are also in the creative industry, which Velissaris believes has helped them be more receptive to her theatre ambitions. These include directing and writing, in addition to performing.

She said that she developed a passion for theatre from a young age from being involved in the arts school, Australian Broadway Chorus.

She was also the school drama captain of her secondary school, Sienna College, performed in several school productions, and attended voice and dancing lessons for most of her secondary years.

Velissaris will travel to Greece next month, where she is excited about seeing the outdoor performances at the Greek amphitheatres. London is her next stop, where she hopes to break into the industry.

“I believe that you should pursue something you love- why not try my luck at it whilst I’m young?”

Aznavour show wins MO award

The Butterfly Club congratulates Milko Foucault–Larché who has just won a 2009 MO Award for Best International Theme Performer in Australia with his show 'Aznavour ... From Today'.

The 33rd Australian Entertainment MO Awards Ceremony was held on Monday 15 June at Bankstown Sports Club in Sydney.

Milko says "I see this win as the result of 20 years of hard work, of patience and determination."

Book now to see the show at www.thebutterflyclub.com
Thurs 9 July at 9.00 pm
Fri 10 July at 9.00 pm
Sat 11 July at 9.00 pm

And a message in French from Milko:

Chers amis,

La Cérémonie du 33ème MO Awards de l'Industrie du Spectacle Australien a eu lieu lundi soir ( 15 Juin) au Bankstown Sports Club à Sydney. Une soirée à guichet fermé pour fêter le monde artistique australien et l'occasion de rencontrer des amis.

Cette année, Le Comité administratif des MO Awards a introduit une nouvelle catégorie pour récompenser les artistes dont les spectacles sont chantés dans une langue étrangère.

"Et bien, je suis fier d'annoncer que lundi soir j'ai remporté mon premier MO Award dans la categorie du MEILLEUR ARTISTE INTERNATIONAL en Australie avec mon spectacle AZNAVOUR ...AUJOURD'HUI. Ce fût un moment tout à fait extraordinaire que d'accepter cette récompense devant une salle remplie de mes pairs. C'est sans aucun doute la consécration de 20ans de dur labeur, de patience et de détermination".

"C'est une récompense que je tiens à partager avec mon épouse et avec tous ceux qui se sont embarqués avec moi sur cette galère pour en faire un spectacle qui reste à ce jour, l'unique spectacle Aznavour en Australie. Je tiens également à remercier tous ceux qui au fil des ans m'ont toujours apporté leur soutien".

Juste une petite parenthèse pour vous rappeler que je chanterai le Spectacle Aznavour au Butterfly Club à Melbourne au mois de Juillet ( 9,10 & 11). Une quatrième représentation a été ajoutée ( 2eme sceance le samedi soir). Les billets sont disponibles en ligne à l'adresse suivante www.thebutterflyclub.com

Notre newsletter d'hiver sortira très bientot.

Bien Cordialement

Milko

Cornucopia! - a mini cabaret fiesta

The Butterfly Club presents

Cornucopia!
A mini cabaret fiesta

Thursday 18 to Sunday 21 June

The recent cold snap led to a snap decision of our own. To encourage audiences to continue to leave their homes and venture out to see live shows, we’re heating up the options by launching this mini cabaret fiesta.

Held in Victoria’s most under-rated cultural asset, the historic Emerald Hill precinct, audiences have the opportunity to experience the best of The Butterfly Club and the South Melbourne Town Hall.

Cornucopia (Thursday 18 to Sunday 21 June) will feature:
- UK Diva, Dolly Diamond
- Winner of a 2009 New York Backstage Bistro Award, Kim Smith
- outstanding Melbourne act Beautiful Rubble
- emerging local performer Miss K in Hot Spell
- together with inimitable trio Bumbellini in the historic, grand surrounds of the former South Melbourne Council Chambers within the Town Hall.

Our thanks to our Creative Partners, the Australian National Academy of Music, for making the Council Chambers available to the public. Audiences attending Bumbellini will experience a fine cabaret production as well as the rare chance to soak up the atmosphere of an historic and extraordinary venue where so much history has been forged.


Bookings for all shows: www.thebutterflyclub.com
Ticket collection for all shows: The Butterfly Club, 204 Bank Street, South Melbourne (audiences for Bumbellini will be ushered to the Council Chambers).

The George and Svetlana Show

By Paul Knox for Arts Hub.

Following the production of the commedia dell’Arte Alarm! for the 2008 Melbourne Fringe Festival, Debbie Zukerman and Celeste Markwell have reprised their characters, George and Svetlana Pantalone for a take on cabaret with a touch of improvisation.

The characters, originally conceived for irreverent social commentary, are fish out of water in a cabaret setting. Add to this two performers who are not particularly accomplished singers, and George and Svetlana saunters along a precarious tightrope of cabaret that relies more on its comedic content than its musical appeal.

Whereas for others this may have been a misstep, Zukerman and Markwell manage to turn deficiencies into charm, re-inventing the Pantalones as an old show-business couple at the end of a long tour, barely able to paper over the cracks of a failing relationship. The songs range from typical cabaret to an enchanting re-arrangement of a Ben Folds classic, all introduced (or interrupted) by partially improvised comedic vignettes that almost always hit the mark.

The performers are supremely confident with their characters and, whilst this incarnation may have lacked some of the punch and more bawdy action that made Alarm! particularly enjoyable, they entertain comically, musically and physically. A highlight of the show are the two dance numbers that take advantage of the significant height difference between Zukerman and Markwell and give them a chance to throw each other around the tiny Butterfly Club stage. They are also an opportunity for “Guy on the Piano” (played by Dave Barclay) to shine; a talented pianist, he also lends his polished vocal talents to these sections.

In The George and Svetlana Show, director Robin Davidson has created a quirky, punchy and fun evening of entertainment. The performers seem to enjoy themselves as much as the audience who chuckled along with them throughout. In cabaret, who could ask for more?

The George and Svetlana Show runs until the 31st of May at The Butterfly Club, 204 Bank Street, South Melbourne. Book now