A rising hum of excitement animated the eclectic inner-city living room. The walls were plastered with mismatched knickknacks, stylish paintings, and gaudy fairy lights. It felt as though we’d been transported back to the 50s, and stolen into the house of an eccentric old lady. What better venue than this, the kooky, quirky Butterfly Club, to host a racy cabaret show? For the throng of eager frill-seekers, getting to explore the retro fit-out of the waiting room worked well to set the tone for the kitsch performance to come.

 

The stars of the evening were The Candy Topps – Stella, Kitty, and Fifi; a trio of talented songstresses presenting ‘Femme Fatales’ as part of the 2015 Melbourne Fringe Festival. A homage to the sounds of jazz and swing, the performance featured revamps of pop classics by famous female artists, punctuated by bawdy banter.

 

They literally burst onto the stage to kick off the show. Stumbling through a heavy curtain with torches in hand, they promised a throw-back to the exaggerated, physical comedy of the 30s and 40s. The three Candy Topps themselves were perfect caricatures of the middle-class minx; frustrated, adventurous, hoity-toity, and very irreverent. Their tongue-in-cheek story telling won many laughs from the crowd and, although it was too dark to tell, probably a few blushes.

 

Read the full review in the upcoming issue of TAT GiRL

Lights. Suggestion. Improv.

A small room in Myers Lane came alive during the Melbourne Fringe Festival with the startlingly fresh enthusiasm and vigour of the Play like a Girlperformers. We were to be introduced to and enveloped by the world of Chicago long-form improvisation.

Beckoning the audience to be creative with a starting suggestion for the show, an audience member boldly called out “magic!” and thus the magic began. The zealous all-female cast took their places on either side of the stage and the booming mock-Eastern European voice of Nadine Sparks began the show, declaring the setting of the performance to be a magic house. We were pulled into this readily fabricated world inside, filled with contrived connections and flawed relationships, from inadequate non-magical daughters to clingy best friends.

A trademark of Chicago long-form improvisation, the style of improvisation used in Play like a Girl, is its various interwoven characters, named and with personality, stepping in and out of the scenario as they see opportunities to bring their character into the story. Adding history to a character, developing them and feeding off the comments of other characters, slowly distinct individual personas are born and worn in throughout the performance. The actresses of Play like a Girl executed this element seamlessly. The patriarch of a magical family began as a stereotypical gypsy character and was then endowed with the role of a husband, the ability to ‘blast’ women and spontaneously impregnate them and the entirely non-subtle sleaziness of a sexed up middle age man past his prime. His daughter, who at first appeared to the audience only as a timid girl, became a series of complex insecurities and hilariously ridiculous shortcomings. His wife, too, and all the other personas were developed complexly and deeply in the same way, all the while maintaining the light and spontaneous hilarity that flooded the stage and the audience’s minds.

Read the full review in the upcoming issue of TAT GiRL

SummerSalt Outdoor Art Festival at Southgate

Every weekend 23 January – 21 February 2015, FREE

 

Southgate Promenade, on the banks of the Yarra River

 

Southgate Melbourne
3 Southgate Avenue, Southbank, Melbourne VIC 3006

 

Full program and information via http://www.southgatemelbourne.com.au

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October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which is an annual campaign to increase awareness of the disease. While most people are aware of breast cancer, many forget to take the steps to have a plan to detect the disease in its early stages and encourage others to do the same. We have made a lot of progress but still have a long way to go and need your help!

Create an early detection plan, Share Beyond The Shock breast cancer educational resources with friends and family, and Host a Fundraiser to help provide mammograms for women in need.

National Breast Cancer Website

Celebrated on September 28, Active Nation Day is aimed at encouraging women to mark their commitment to Active Living by getting out and moving their bodies.

With the inaugural Active Nation Day held in 2012, in just three short years the Sporty Sisterhood has come leaps and bounds having collectively moved over 8 million kms to date, a true testament to just how inspiring and motivated LJ girls are!

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The Girls On Film Festival is a live mixtape of feminism, film, music and talk to be held in Melbourne at the Northcote Townhall from September 12 to 14, 2014

More information please visit http://www.girlsonfilmfestival.com/

The Australia Times wants passionate writers interested in fun and creative, unique content aimed at 16-25 year old females, who wish to gain some first-hand experience in the world of journalism.

The Australian Times is a free, magazine based, non-aligned, grassroots, national online publication. We are a blend of professional and citizen journalism creating online content for specialist groups and the community at large.

Each month TAT GiRL covers a large range of issues and interests of 16 to 25 year old girls!

If you think you’re suitable and would like to be published in a national online publication- email amy.freund@theaustraliatimes.com.au

**Submission does not gaurentee publication. Joining the TAT GiRL team as a writer is currently a voluntary position.