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

Multi-award winner Jacob Diefenbach returns to 'Face The Music'

GREEN ROOM AWARD WINNER

JACOB DIEFENBACH

RETURNS TO “FACE THE MUSIC”

The Butterfly Club (204 Bank St, South Melbourne)
Thursday – Sunday, 25-28 June 2009, 9 pm (except Sunday, 8 pm)

Brisbane-based cabaret performer, Jacob Diefenbach – recent winner of the Green Room Award for “Best Original Songs” in the cabaret genre – returns to The Butterfly Club, Melbourne’s iconic house of cabaret, to present “Facing The Music”.

Diefenbach’s Green Room win came hot off the heels of receiving the “Best Cabaret” gong at the Melbourne Fringe Festival in October last year, and a nomination for “Best Musical” at the Matilda Awards in Brisbane earlier this year.

Things may be moving fast for 25-year-old Diefenbach, but even so, his latest offering, “Facing The Music”, is a sobering wake up a call for working musicians.

Jacob confides, “I’m not quite Lindsay yet.”

Diefenbach, whose influences range from “Bach” to “Britney” (though you’ll hear less of her in his lyrics), has been creating a stir with his electric live performances.

“Facing The Music” is a darkly comical and shamelessly self-referential look at what it takes to ‘make it’ in the music biz. Jacob admits that his latest show is his greatest step into the world of cabaret to date, playing the struggling / eternally insecure and self-questioning artist – at once desperate to please, jaded, reflective and, at times, hysterical (“It's not much of a stretch”, he concedes).

“Coming out as a musician was, in many ways, harder than “coming out” in general.”

“I thought I had it figured out – thought I’d graduate from law, become a top human rights activist and settle down in some pretty, inner-city suburb. Yeah, it didn’t turn out that way.”

“Facing The Music” traces Diefenbach’s personal journey to make music a part of his life.

In August, Diefenbach heads into Lunchbox Studios, under the guidance of Powderfinger’s Darren Middleton, to record his third CD release.

LISTING INFO
Dates / times: Thursday – Sunday, 25-28 June, 9 pm (except Sun, 8 pm)
Venue: The Butterfly Club, 204 Bank Street, South Melbourne
Bookings: The Butterfly Club's secure bookings site - www.thebutterflyclub.com
Ticket price: $22 full / $17 concession and for groups of 8 or more
Duration: 60 minutes approx
More info: Listen to the title track at Jacob's myspace site

The show ten years in the making!

Sunday 19 April at 2.00 pm (one performance only!)

Bookings for this event is via the comedy festival website.

Your host is the voice of the Sydney Olympics and SBS, Robbie McGregor.

Featuring:
Tim Minchin (Perrier Award Winner)
Colin Lane (Lano & Woodley, Perrier Award Winner)
Sammy J and Randy the puppet
Yana Alana
Wes Snelling
Mark Jones and Karlis Zaid from The Beautiful Losers
Dan Ilic from Beaconsfield The Musical
Ali McGregor
Geraldine Quinn
Jon Jackson
Karin Muiznieks
James Simpson
Joanne O’Callaghan
The Butterfly Glee Club

Post show drinks at The Butterfly Club, 204 Bank St, South Melbourne from 5.00 pm.

Venue: The Hi Fi, 125 Swanston Street, CBD. Click here for directions.
Bookings: comedyfestival.com.au or call Ticketmaster on 1300 660 013
Ticket price: $45 full / $38 concession and for groups of 8 or more
Date / time: Sunday 19 April at 2.00 pm
Duration: 2 hours approx

Review: Dave Graney Live in Hell

Review by Lachlan Bryan, Arts Hub, 27/3/09

Dave Graney is nothing if not self-aware. In a way, it’s what his new cabaret Live in Hell is all about – but it’s also the reason why, tonight at least, the show didn’t quite live up to its premise.

A curious figure, Graney has carved himself a niche as an always quirky, innovative and at times even schmaltzy singer and songwriter in Australia and Europe over the past twenty-five or so years. His efforts have earned critical acclaim and at times popular approval.

Live in Hell is the sequel to Point Blank (which debuted in 2006) and it examines the journey of ‘the performer’ once either success, popularity (or even just a hint of either) has taken hold. The show asserts that at such point the performer descends into a living “hell” – not necessarily presided over by a devil but undoubtedly populated by demons of some description. Through a mixture of song, semi-improvised storytelling and a series of pop-culture (particularly pop-music) references, Graney and his band (including leather-clad wife and long-time collaborator Clare Moore) attempt to illustrate this central idea – with the help of absent performer ‘friends’ as loosely connected as Jim Morrison and Chad Morgan.

I wasn’t particularly enamoured with Graney’s song-writing tonight – but I really do like the way his mind works. His concept of hell is indeed thought provoking, and presumably the result of much self-analysis. To the small audience of mostly middle-aged musical contemporaries it may have all seemed like something of an ‘in-joke’ at times. But there is more to it than that, and from amongst the self-deprecation emerged a critique not only of the way we as an audience devour our entertainers, but also the way the performers set themselves up for a fall by pursuing continued relevance and simultaneously hankering after the glories of ‘back in the day’.

But this leads me back to Graney’s self-awareness. It seemed to me that Live in Hell is a character piece, yet Dave was not completely playing the character. Instead he was caught somewhere in between – unsure whether to immerse himself in the role and suspend disbelief or simply descend into self-parody. Too often he chose the latter – and by doing so he became less convincing and exposed weaknesses in the production that may have gone unnoticed if driven by a more committed performance.

I can’t help but feel that the venue also contributed. The Butterfly Club is wonderful, but it allows for only the most skeletal, minimalist production. This particular piece would, in my opinion, benefit greatly from a little more ‘smoke and mirrors’, and a more defined “fourth wall”. The concept behind Live in Hell deserves expansion and elaboration – it really seems to me to require the theatricality only hinted at by Graney’s shimmering purple shirt and trouser set.

I think the show will get better over the weekend as Graney and co. become more comfortable with the material. It’s an ambitious project with lots of potential, and Graney has the charisma to pull it off. Certainly worthy of stronger production and a longer season.

Dave Graney Live in Hell
At The Butterfly Club, South Melbourne
Dates: Thursday 26 to Saturday 28 March (three performances)
Time: 9.00 pm
Ticket price: $27 full / $22 concession and for groups of 8 or more
Bookings: www.thebutterflyclub.com
Duration: 60 minutes approx

Review: Dr Sketchy's Anti Art School

Review by Zoë Wolfendale, ArtsHub, 25/03/09

I studied art, I collect art, and go to big quiet places to appreciate it... but I have never attended an art class like the one I turned up to last night.

We arrived just before 8pm to collect drinks and tickets. People were milling around outside, smoking and clutching their sketch pads.

Last night Lydia De Carllo was our model, a burlesque dancer from Vancouver who has been running shows at Cristal Burlesque, each Sunday at the Cristal Bar in South Yarra.

Having attended shows at the Butterfly Club in the past, I was familiar with the venue and knew that it would be an interesting space in which to run a drawing class. I was not wrong, it was packed, all with sketch pads and pencils in hand.

From where I was sitting I could see snippets of Lydia as she held poses for us. The first hour was spent sketching short poses of around 3 minutes each, although this was extended if the audience requested and Lydia was comfortable. After a short break to refill glasses and remove some of the charcoal from my face, we settled in for some longer poses.

Lydia created lovely and interesting poses for us, very much in the pin-up style of the 50’s, and she looked the part. We were allowed to take photos, which I took advantage of so that I could practice for next month.

The evening ended with Lydia performing for us, which was a great way to end a fun couple of hours. There were balloons involved and I felt like I was in a speak-easy in Chicago for a short while.

One piece of advice for anyone planning to attend, do not wear anything warm, the room heated up as we worked, and in the end it was like taking an art class in a sauna, (an arty version of Bikram yoga).

This drawing class offered me an insight into just how out of practice I am, and any experimenting with perspective was completely out of my reach, although I did think that some burlesque dancing classes might be next on my list of skills to attain, (such a cheeky and sexy genre).

Unlike a traditional art class you do not receive any instruction, this is simply an opportunity to practice without grades and also be with other people with the same interest, and see how they work and what they produce.

That being said, my work ended up looking like either some kind of insect scratching or a completely unintelligible mess of line and form (ho-hum).I tried to angle my sketch pad to hide the train wreck of my efforts, but by the end of the night I had relaxed and was happily sharing with others.

If you consider the last time I attended a life drawing class I had to submit a letter from my mother allowing me, (an innocent Catholic school girl) < insert smirk>, to look at and draw naked bodies, then I have certainly come a long way - taking myself off the the Butterfly Club with NO NOTE from my mother!

So if you have the urge to draw naked bodies, then go along, you will be part of a worldwide event, there are 30 classes around the world.

Dr. Sketchy's Anti Art School is run on the last Wednesday of each month at The Butterfly Club, 204 Bank St, South Melbourne. The fun starts at 8pm and continues till about 10. Visit Dr. Sketchy’s website for more information.

History in the making: Dave Graney to share dressing room with the Sharon Molls

The iconic Dave Graney will be "Live, in Hell" in more ways than one this weekend.



First, that's what his show's called, and second, he has to share a dressing room with these lovely ladies, Grand Prix protestors the Sharon Molls.

Bookings at our secure website. Dave is on Thurs to Sat and the Molls are on Thurs to Sun.

Review for this weekend's shows

From Here to Maternity and The Attack of the 40 Foot Wedge
The Butterfly Club 19 March 2009
Reviewer: David Allen

This week sees the invasion of The Butterfly Club in South Melbourne by a horde of theatrical women, voices at the ready, biting senses of humour and stories galore.

Well, two theatrical women, but a very theatrical pair! Covering everything from the perils of motherhood to the search for yourself – preferably not someone else's – the two new shows take us on a perilous and exciting journey full of hope, joy and hilarity.

Lizzie Matjacic opens the evening with the story of her journey From Here to Maternity. From finding out about her impending motherhood to the ongoing battle of living with a third person in the house, Lizzie blends story and song to really get across what it's like to be a new mother. Lizzie's voice is beautiful and powerful, showing a classical style that supports the familiar musical theatre tunes well. Songs from musicals such as Working (Just a Housewife) and I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change (The Baby Song) fit neatly into the stories of changing nappies and regular feedings that are the bane of every young mother's existence.

Lizzie's strength is her experience, and by sharing the tales that have made her both laugh and cry, she opens up to her audience in a powerful and endearing way. While being realistic about the trials and tribulations, it's clear that she loves being a parent, a feeling that's quite catchy – even to the point of making this 21-year-old male reviewer just a little clucky!

The evening continues with The Attack of the 40 Foot Wedge, a hilarious retelling by Nikki Aitken of her escape from Adelaide and nearly impromptu journey to Europe.

Seeking a husband, a hit broadway show and a house of her own, Nikki finds that two out of three ain't bad - but one out of three is terrible. Nikki is a born comedian, with the ability to send up the people who she has met on her travels to great effect. Her experience of attempting to organise a passport in the middle of Greece, in particular, is a hilarious send-up of culture shock that left audience members in fits of laughter.

Musically, the show stands out from the crowd, as the vast majority of the music has been written by Nikki purely for the show. Mixed into a couple of familiar songs (John Mayer's My Stupid Mouth and Nellie McKay's I Wanna Get Married , to name but two), the original music gives the show a personal flavour not often seen in performance.

Special mention must be made of the title song, 40 Foot Wedge, a hilarious dream sequence reminiscent of those made famous by Fiddler On The Roof. Between the two of them, Nikki and Lizzie have created two fantastic insights into what it's like to be a woman in modern society. Funny, serious and just a little crazy, these two highly talented women give us a night to remember.

THE ATTACK OF THE 40 FOOT WEDGE

Living in London can sometimes feel like you are being stepped on by the biggest heels in fashion. Starting tonight, Nikki Aitken sings the West End home with some hilarious stories from the Big Smoke! Devil Wears Prada meets Shirley Valentine.

“Nikki Aitken belts out with a huge voice” – The Adelaide Advertiser

Dates: Wednesday 18 to Saturday 21 March (four performances)
Time: Preview night at 8.30 pm Wed; then 9.00 pm Thurs to Sat
Ticket price: $22 full / $17 concession and for groups of 8 or more
Bookings: www.thebutterflyclub.com
Duration: 60 minutes approx

Review: Surviving a Modern World - closing tonight!

Review by David Allen

Surviving A Modern World The Butterfly Club 12 March 2009

Recently graduated from the VCA, John Frankland and Stephanie Evison-Williams are finding the real world, well, a little bit tough. And so, like all recent performing arts students should, they did the only sensible thing – they wrote a cabaret about it.

Surviving a Modern World is really two short cabarets joined together, each performer operating mainly independently and performing a short show in their own right. Drawn together by the common theme of 'where do I go from here?', the two pieces allow each performer to show off and spill a little bit of their personality onto the stage.

Cursed by a vague resemblance to two famous musicians, John Frankland has developed a quirky and insidious comedic style that leaves audiences in stitches. Coupled with an impressively powerful 'musical theatre'-style voice, John's piece is clever, witty and great to watch.

An innovative approach to modern theatre and impressive use of 'props' make his performance laugh-out-loud funny and just a little groan-worthy.

In contrast to her more 'together' stagemate, Stephanie Evison-Williams has a disjointed, slightly crazy style that makes her quirkily appealing to any person who has ever spilt food all down themselves on a date or declared their undying love for a celebrity.

Rejoicing in her absurdity, Stephanie's wacky approach leads to some downright hilarious antics, including a brilliantly crafted dance with a heart-shaped pillow and a photograph.

Closed nicely at the end with Monty Python's famous Universe Song, Surviving a Modern World is a fresh take on life outside of institutionalised education.

Raw, a little unpolished, but always honest, this is great fun from new strong young voices in cabaret.

Review for Fabtastix: Behind the Pearls and Trash of the Pops

Fabtastix: Behind the Pearls and Trash of the Pops
The Butterfly Club 5 March 2009
Reviewer: David Allen

Two brand new cabarets take over the stage this week at The Butterfly Club. Featuring three talented young performers, the shows are fun, silly, musical, bright, colourful and just a lot irreverent.

Trash of the Pops sees the return of Garret Buffo the self-important self-professed sex-god, the creation of Melbourne performer Oliver Farrell. Buffo takes us through a series of famous eighties hit songs, performed in his own inimitable style – as they should, he says, having been stolen from him in the eighties by the more well-known singers who made them famous.

Featuring such hits as Let's Hear It For The Boy, You Spin Me Round and Love is a Battlefield, the show starts out as a camptastic cringefest – and not much changes during the 45 minutes in the showroom. That said, Oliver is impressively committed to his character and performance, responding to an uncomfortably small audience and lack of audience participation with simply more enthusiasm.

While Buffo is an amusing and eccentric character, it is a shame that he does not bring anything particularly new to the music or the rather tenuous story. That said, his perrformance is endearing, amusing and a bit of fun.

The real jewel of The Butterfly Club this week is Fabtastix: Behind the Pearls, a collaboration between Justin Clausen and veteran musical director James Simpson that delves into the world of the overpaid and overdressed – set, perhaps appropriately, in a boutique homewares store in Brighton.

Fabtastix makes use of some great recent music, including the cult hit by Kristin Chenoweth, Taylor, The Latte Boy (a particular favourite that showed off Clausen's acting ability perfectly). With much of the music rewritten and tailored for the storyline, the musical interludes are generally a slick and well-suited way of furthering the story, thankfully free from the balance issues that were evident during the dialogue.

Clausen appears as various different characters during the piece, including both his bosses and several potential new junior employees. While the characters are amusing, they do tend to blur together somewhat, possibly being too similar to each other and not distinct enough to be really characters in their own right. Justin's ability to transform from one to the other is impressive, however, and should be applauded (as, indeed, it was).

With all of these characters running around on stage, it is interesting that the show really came alive when the character dropped, with a story about an older woman called Mrs Stevens, and we saw what appeared to be the real Justin underneath. He shows a real talent for storytelling, with a genuine love for the tales of the people that he meets, and the song folowing this story was truly magical. As in much of the best cabaret, when the character drops, the real performer shines through, and the audience get to see something personal and real.

Two new takes on life and love and music and song, these two new shows are fun and silly, and so wonderfully irreverent that you can't help but smile. Fabtastix: Behind the Pearls and Trash of the Pops are on now at The Butterfly Club.

The Butterfly Club is turning 10!

10th Birthday Party for The Butterfly Club

Bookings for this event is via the comedy festival website.

The Butterfly Club flutters from its South Melbourne cocoon to the Hi-Fi Bar to present a lavish selection of comedy cabaret acts that have appeared on its stage over the past ten marvellous years. One show only!

The acts will be revealed progressively on this blog as we get closer to the date. Sorry to be such a tease ;-) Rest assured, we have a stunning line-up of emerging and world-class comedy cabaret performers!

Post show drinks at The Butterfly Club, 204 Bank St, South Melbourne.

Date / time: Sunday 19 April at 2.00 pm (one performance only!)
Venue: The Hi Fi, 125 Swanston Street, CBD. Click here for directions.

Bookings: www.comedyfestival.com.au or call Ticketmaster on 1300 660 013
Ticket price: $45 full / $38 concession and for groups of 8 or more
Duration: 2 hours approx

Note: Patrons under 18 will only be admitted if accompanied by their parent or legal guardian, which needs to be proven by identification.

Colin Lane is not sure about the music

The Melbourne International Comedy Festival presents

Colin Lane in

I’M NOT SURE ABOUT THE MUSIC

Wed 1 to Sat 25 April

Colin Lane (Lano from Lano & Woodley) is stepping out solo with a brand new cabaret show. Colin is the man. Well, not THE man … but the man in this scenario. The man’s not sure about the music. The man doesn’t get the music. The man gets the music. The man loses the music. The man gets the music back.

Warning: show contains a couple of songs with no jokes!

Preview dates / times: Wednesday 1 April to Sunday 5 April, shows at 9.00 pm (8.00 pm Sunday)
Ticket price: All preview tickets $22

Season dates / times: Wednesday 8 April to Saturday 25 April, shows at 9.00 pm (8.00 pm Sundays). No shows Mondays or Tuesdays.
Ticket price: $27 full / $22 concession and for groups of 8 or more

Bookings: via this secure website
Duration: 50 minutes approx

Dave Graney is Live, in HELL!

> book now

A performer must always carry about them a whiff of poison and hemlock. Ambrosia. They must always be on their way to somewhere better. Teasing and leaving the people by the side of the road, alone. They will never be coming back.

This story is about a performer who has no resource to other worlds. No plane ticket in the back pocket, no connections to the real world. He is stuck here on this damned island, dealing with whatever he finds and whoever comes along.

But he has his powers and his old maps and trails to over lay the land. He has dimensions! He has you SURROUNDED!

We are Live, in HELL!

In hell we live only as reflected by others.

Each performer, in the beginning must possess and embody and project a future. A world of possibilities. That’s what attracts the attention of people. The best people of the time, who are hungry for something / anything. These are the people that eat you up. Later they spit you out as something else. Then other people come. The ones who were late. There’s more of them. They are there for the past. The present or the past. Not the future. There is no future.

We are Live, in HELL!

Dave Graney, ARIA award winner and long running enigmatic performer in the rock scenes of the world, sings songs he has composed in HELL! Accompanied by Clare Moore with a box of percussion and Stu Thomas aka Stu D on baritone fuzz guitar.

Dates: Thursday 26 to Saturday 28 March (three performances)
Time: 9.00 pm
Ticket price: $27 full / $22 concession and for groups of 8 or more
Duration: 60 minutes approx

THE PETTICOAT SOIREE

Due to overwhelming demand this show has been extended to 14 March. Book now though as we can NOT extend beyond this date!


The Butterfly Club is proud to announce a new residency by redroomTHEATREcompany

THE PETTICOAT SOIREE

A night of outrageous debauchery and forbidden laughter.

> book now

THE PETTICOAT SOIREE is a non-stop romp of laughter, song, dance and flesh! Roll Up. Roll Up! Come one come all ...

THE PETTICOAT SOIREE will spellbind audience with an outrageously spectacular spectacle of tremendous talent and opulent extravagance.

From a time of old comes the time of new, a world of decadence and razzle dazzle. Drawing on the traditions of Burlesque, Vaudeville and Cabaret THE PETTICOAT SOIREE is an explosion of song, dance and delicious irony. An extravaganza of extraordinary acts, sumptuous seduction in a special late night show design to mesmerize, seduce and titillate.

redroomTHEATREcompany has a history of designing and creating new and exciting theatre. In 2008 redroom won the inaugural Short Sweet + Cabaret festival with F**K YOU SHIRLEY TEMPLE which was followed by LA FEMME NOUVELLE “Fun, sexy.....hilarious!”

redroomTHEATREcompany presents a brand new, awe-inspiring marvel with a stellar cast of Melbourne’s hottest talent. This show is where the bizarre runs rampant – it’s surprising, daring, impossible and dangerous.

Featuring a menagerie of stars including: Kitty Fox, Stella DeVine, The Cox Brothers, The Candy Topps and Vera Limp, THE PETTICOAT SOIREE is guaranteed to be the hottest if not the sexiest ticket in town.

redroomTHEATREcompany:
“Exciting new theatre … spellbinding!” – artshub.com.au
“Startling, intense … rewarding!” – vibewire.net

Written and Directed by Alister Smith
Starring: Elenor Adams / Emma Clair Ford / Jennifer Robinson / Priscilla Armstrong / Andrew Ronay-Jenkings / Jordan Bowering

Dates: Fridays and Saturdays from 20 February to 14 March (eight performances)
Time: 10.30 pm
Ticket price: $27 full / $22 concession and for groups of 8 or more
Duration: 60 minutes approx