Following the success of their two-week residency at Sydney’s Darlinghurst Theatre (on now as part of BLOOM Festival), The People of Cabaret are proud to be presenting a record-breaking and exclusive online variety show extravaganza for this year’s Melbourne Digital Fringe. The People of Cabaret’s founding director Miss Cairo spoke on Big Brekkie with Gman. The People of Cabaret is a newly-formed collective dedicated to amplifying, uplifting, nurturing and supporting artists of who are Indigenous and/or Bla(c)k and/or people of colour (IBPOC) working in the sparkly and scintillating worlds of cabaret, circus, burlesque, musical theatre and associated performing arts.
Hosted by The People of Cabaret’s founding director, Miss Cairo , and curated especially for Melbourne Fringe, the astonishing lineup of all-IBPOC performers will be beamed in from interstate and around the globe. This 90 minute-long show features performances from Australian performers including the Kamilaroi cowboy Dale Woodbridge-Brown (Briefs), critically acclaimed musical theatre actor and composer/lyricist Vidya Makan (Sunday In The Park With Geoge, Six), Pasifika drag queen and Dragnation Winner 2019 Kween Kong , Canberra’s premier burlesque performer Jazida , multi award-winning feminist cabaret star Victoria Falconer (Fringe Wives Club, EastEnd Cabaret) and Arrente icon of Blak queerness and Naidoc LGBTQI+ Pride 2019 Winner Stone Motherless Cold .
International acts include the UK’s Prinx of provocation and first ever transgender finalist in Mr Gay England Chiyo , Brooklyn drag royalty Merrie Cherry, and Miss Monday Blues from Virago Nations, Canada’s all Indigenous burlesque performance troupe.
Committed to facilitating change in the wider industry, this show is not only a showcase for this dazzling array of IBPOC performers, but is a fundraiser to support the ongoing work of The People of Cabaret and its ever-growing network of artists and creatives of colour, actively combatting racism from within the performing arts industry, summed up by their rallying cry: We Are Here.
Miss Cairo says: “The People of Cabaret Variety Spectacular showcases nearly 150 artists who identify as Indigenous and/or Bla(c)k and/or people of colour, and watching this show is the simplest thing you can do to show support for our communities. We are no longer waiting for the proverbial microphone to be passed - this is us plugging in our own microphone, to tell our own stories. Listen. Spread the word. Donate to our fundraiser, and learn how you can amplify and support these diverse voices.”
This project is supported by Melbourne Fringe through the Cash for Creatives program.
Showtimes: Thursday 12 November, 7:00PM Friday 13 November, 6:00AM & 10:00AM & 2PM for GMT, EDT and UTC time zones respectively for 7:00PM Showings: Tuesday 17 November, 7:00PM Tuesday 24 November, 7:00PM Content warning: Contains some nudity, mild coarse language, references to racially-motivated violence and discrimination. Further information: Closed captioning available for all shows. Tickets via melbournefringe.com.au/event/the-people-of-cabaret/ Recommended ticket donation: $10.00