What's On

Circus Oz gets hot and sweaty for Midsumma…
THE BLUE SHOW

Feast your eyes. Smell the danger. Taste the sweat.

“Fast paced, full of wonder and overflowing with eye candy, this is circus with no boring bits at all” samesame.com.au

Circus Oz will present a strictly limited season of The Blue Show as part of the 2011 Midsumma Festival program. Sexy, dangerous and seriously funny, The Blue Show will reveal a daring side of the Circus Oz ensemble up close and in the flesh. This is the company’s first show in their new 100-year-old Circus Oz Melba Spiegeltent, at the Docklands from 13 January – 6 February 2011.

The Blue Show – made just for adults - promises a sizzling night of raw physicality, sexy antics and cheeky fun as the Circus Oz mob unleash their breathtaking skills, exposing more than a little skin. All this steamy circus action will be set to the pulsating sounds of the live Circus Oz band.

The Blue Show is directed by guest director, Anni Davey who has a long association with Circus Oz. Anni first joined the company as a performer in 1987, but since then has returned in numerous roles including trapeze artist, diva and bon vivant. Well known in the Melbourne arts community as a celebrated performer and director, Anni is also a regular aerial and performance trainer at both Circus Oz and the Women’s Circus. Of The Blue Show, Anni says, “the performers have been asked to realize their oddest, strangest, wackiest, wildest ideas, without fear of censor. As a result, there will be crazy beautiful music, conceptual acrobatics and intelligent stupidness. And remember, you’ll be really, really close to it all.“

In 2003 Stephen Page commissioned Circus Oz to create a new show for the 2004 Adelaide Arts Festival. The result was The Blue Show, which performed to sell out crowds. Later that year, Circus Oz performed a new version of The Blue Show in Melbourne at the Famous Spiegeltent. This latest rendition for the 2011 Midsumma Festival has been created specifically for the unique space of the Circus Oz Melba Spiegeltent and is chock-a-block with new surprises.

Circus Oz purchased the Melba Spiegeltent in September 2010. Built in 1910 and originally called The Bacaladera Spiegeltent, it has travelled across Europe with numerous legends treading its boards including Edith Piaf. It was renamed ‘The Melba Spiegeltent’, after the iconic Australian opera soprano Dame Nellie Melba, when it was bought to Australia in 2007 by Circus Royale’s Frank Gasser. Dame Nellie Melba was arguably Australia’s first international superstar, born in Richmond and now adorning the $100 note. A perfect venue for festivals, arts events, corporate functions, workshops, commitment ceremonies and other acts of joyful celebrations, the Circus Oz Melba Spiegeltent will be available for hire from mid-December onwards. Midsumma Festival, taking place from January 16 to February 6 2011, celebrates queer culture in Melbourne with a diverse and exciting program. Each year over 80,000 individuals across Melbourne and Australia participate in and attend Midsumma Festival events. For 22 years, Midsumma has continued to enhance Melbourne as a culturally sophisticated and artistically vibrant city.

Get up close and personal with Circus Oz at ‘The Blue Show’. It’s sophisticated, it’s sexy, it’s sweaty and it’s just a little bit rude!


Circus Oz
The Blue Show

January 13 to February 6, 2011
TICKETS ON SALE NOW
Season Information
Show time: 9:00pm
Duration: 1.5 hours
Venue: Circus Oz Melba Spiegeltent, Corner of Waterfront Way and Docklands Drive, Docklands
Dates:
January 13, 14, 15, 16, 19, 20, 21, 29, 30
February 4, 5 and 6
Ticket Prices
Adults: $38.00
Concession: $30
Groups over 8 (adults): $28
**Suitable for ages 18 and over. This show does contain nudity and some coarse language.
Bookings via: Midsumma http://www.midsumma.org.au or
Hares & Hyenas 63 Johnston St Fitzroy 03 9495 6589
For further information go to www.circusoz.com/blueshow