From burlesque to textiles, musicals to short stories, Seesaw Mag’s curated gig guide gives you the low-down on what’s on this month, in Perth and beyond.
Features/What to SEE/Multi-arts
What to SEE: October gig guide
20 September 2022
- Reading time • 10 minutesMulti-arts
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Keen for your art fix this October? Nina Levy has curated a tempting selection of shows, exhibitions, concerts and more.
Musical theatre
Tony Galati the Musical
Perth metro & WA regional tour, 22 October – 19 November
Tony Galati the Musical is back… and I’m here for some potato-based fun.
If, like me, you didn’t catch the Spud King at his two Fringe World seasons, there are plenty of opportunities coming up, in Perth’s outer suburbs and further afield.
Tony Galati the Musical tells the tale of the blue-singleted battler and founder of the Spudshed, Tony Galati. Presenter Western Sky Projects promises it’s a heartwarming toe-tapper with snappy songs, packed with more Perth memes than you can poke a spud at.
In addition to shows in Perth – at Thornlie’s Don Russell Performing Arts Centre and Kalamunda Performing Arts Centre – the much-loved musical is touring to Albany, Beverly, Merredin, Harvey, Mandurah, Williams Geraldton and Moora. Phew! More info
Dance
Hundreds + Thousands
@ PICA, 13-15 October
Hundreds + Thousands brings together two of my favourite things: dance and plants. You can even BYO house plant.
Created by long-time collaborators Luke George (Melbourne) and Daniel Kok (Singapore), Hundreds + Thousands is described as “a lush sensory performance for humans and plants”.
Part dance, part experimental music, part installation, Hundreds + Thousands will transform PICA into a plant-filled landscape that blurs the boundaries between people and the natural world, say its creators.
“Visitors will feel a sense of everything breathing together as they rest in our ‘makeshift’ garden and we invite them to consider both our relationship with plants, and the wider world around us – a world currently in crisis,” says co-creator and performer Daniel Kok. More info
Burlesque
Perth International Burlesque Festival
@ various venues, 7-25 October
Celebrating all things burlesque and cabaret, the highlight of the Perth International Burlesque Festival is its gala event, Club Burlesque.
Taking place at Mt Lawley’s Astor Theatre, Saturday 22 October, Club Burlesque will be hosted by the UK’s “Grand Duchess of Cabaret”, Kiki DeVille. Headliners include 21st Century Burlesque’s “Top 50 Most Influential Burlesque Figure” title holder Gina Stirling and Mr Boylesque Australia Karl Kayoss.
There’s also an opening night party, The Tease Factory, at The Court, Friday 21 October, and the official after party, Glitter Crash, at Connections Night Club, Saturday 22 October.
For the full line-up of performances and workshops head to perthburlesquefestival.com
Visual art
twentyFIVE + crossover
@ Holmes a Court @ no10, 22 October – 12 November
As a keen knitter and sewist, I’m super keen to check out “twentyFIVE + crossover” at Holmes à Court Gallery @ no.10.
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the West Australian Fibre and Textile Association (WAFTA), the organisation is holding the first major contemporary textile art award prize in WA. Selected by a jury, the exhibition includes 42 textile works and three prizes will be awarded.
The artists were given the criteria of using no more than three textile techniques and finding new ways to use traditional fibre/textile materials and techniques.
There are many much-loved makers amongst the 40 artists chosen to exhibit, including Susie Vickery, Tania Spencer, Deirdre Robb, Martien van Zuilen, Jayne Argent and Margaret Ford. More info
Literature
The Australian Short Story Festival
@ Fremantle Arts Centre, 28-30 October
Perfect for the 21st century attention span, it’s no surprise that the short story form is experiencing something of a renaissance.
So it’s exciting to see that The Australian Short Story Festival will be visiting Fremantle at the end of October, with three days of panel discussions, book launches, readings, children’s storytelling, workshops and live music. International guests include Ireland’s Sheila Armstrong and Norway-based American writer Allen C Jones, alongside local authors such as John Kinsella, Susan Midalia, Gillian O’Shaughnessy and Elizabeth Tan.
The opening night will celebrate song as a special short story form, and includes some of WA’s finest singer/songwriters – including Lucky Oceans and David Milroy (pictured) – sharing their song-writing inspiration and performing their songs live. More info
Music
Strings Attached 2022: The West Australian Guitar Festival
@ various venues in Margaret River, 7-9 October
The third iteration of Strings Attached: The West Australian Guitar Festival will be taking place at dozens of venues throughout Margaret River, with more than 80 events showcasing many of Australia’s most prominent guitarists and luthiers.
There’ll be live performances across a range of genres including blues and roots, jazz, metal, rock, country, classical and more. Whether you’re into electric, acoustic, bass, mandolin, banjo or ukulele, there’ll be players showcasing the magic of strings.
For those who want to dive a bit deeper, you can enjoy exhibitions and demos, workshops, masterclasses and Q&As. Check out the full line up at www.waguitarfestival.com.au
Theatre
Homeward Bound
@ The Blue Room Theatre, 4-22 October
Local theatre collective Lazy Yarns have enjoyed glowing reviews from Seesaw Mag in recent years, with 2021’s What of it and 2018’s Penthouse. So I’m looking forward to their latest offering, Homeward Bound.
Written and performed by Isaac Diamond, Homeward Bound draws intriguing-sounding parallels between the journeys of migratory birds and that of an astronaut who awakens to find himself stranded on the other side of the universe. Like the birds, this traveller must find their way home, across the oceans of space that separate them from their home.
Add in a score from one of my favourite composer/designers Rachael Dease, and I’m sold. More info
Opera
La traviata
@ His Majesty’s Theatre, 20-29
Billed by presenter West Australian Opera (WAO) as one of the greatest romances of all time, Verdi’s La traviata is the ultimate tragic love story.
Courtesan Violetta and aristocrat Alfredo fall in love but it’s a love that can’t survive social expectation. When Alfredo’s father demands that Violetta end the relationship to save their family name she makes the ultimate sacrifice.
This new co-production between WAO, Opera Queensland and State Opera South Australia sees tenor Paul O’Neill in the role of Alfedo, with soprano Samantha Clarke making her debut as Violetta. More info
Pictured top: ‘Tony Galati Musical’. Photo: Sean Breadsell
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