Here is a selection of some of the artists who graced our stage at the Hot August Fringe during 2009, 2010 and 2011:
Alan A
How do you like it? Sweet and romantic? Or cheesy and sleazy? Either way, Alan A offers the whole package! His provocative and amusing performance was based on the cocky first album ‘Ambiguity’ along with some new songs that entertained and stuck … in your mind.
Aletia Upstairs
Performing as Miss Demeanour, Aletia presented her show ‘In These Shoes’ about the heels you walk in and the *heels* you fall in love with. From being empowered in someone else’s shoes to the shoe that just won’t fit. A journey inspired by life’s little dramas and our sexual fascination with shoes.
Alp Haydar
Video and cabaret sensation, Alp Haydar presented ‘Flight 666 to Bermuda’ where, on a long-haul flight, a nervous young man tries to come out to his ill-tempered mother. Her subsequent rejection pushes him into the arms of dashing terrorist Mohammed, where he quickly develops Stockholm syndrome. In short, this is the greatest love story air-ver told.
BURN
Following a sold-out event at the London Lesbian & Gay Film Festival and a trip to Manchester for Mother’s Pride, the platform for moving images by cabaret artists came to HAF with work-in-progress material from two upcoming documentaries about underground and queer performance. It included work from Holestar and East End Cabaret, with a live performance from Dickie Beau.
Faby Licious
Faby Licious is the only queer rockstar to have come out from Vatican city. With his show ‘Batty Bwoy Out of Hell’, he had the crowd pogoing to his satirical lyrics juxtaposed to familiar tunes. This was interrupted only by his debatable defensive of his hometown. Faby Licious puts the rage in outrageous!
GETINTHEBACKOFTHEVAN
Part clowning duo, part party-political-broadcast, part cookery demonstration, part gross-out, GETINTHEBACKOFTHEVAN’s signature piece ‘Eaten Mess’ saw ‘David Cameron’ and ‘Nick Clegg’ welcomed to the stage to make an Eton Mess. And, as the performers told us, if you don’t know who Nick Clegg is, it really doesn’t matter.
Juha
With his Rock n Wrestle Road Show, Juha (aka Collin Clay Chace) introduced us to a range of characters, from a macho wrestler who idolizes “those whacky homosexuals” to an heiress who’s become a peace activist now that the war interferes with her sex life. This host of colorful folk were speaking upon their release from a mental health ward.
The Lipsinkers
Infamous Bistrotheque cabaret stalwarts, The LipSinkers, presented their summer collection of joyful tunes, tasteless looks and dicey choreography. Comprising of Ryan Styles, Richardette, Lisa Lee, Blanche DuBois and John Sizzle, they performed their favourite routines in their own inimitable fashion.
Lorraine Bowen
Lorraine celebrated the the 70th birthday of polyester in ‘Polyester Fiesta’, giving this wonder fabric the praise it deserves with 60s/70s catalogue style dancers and geeky scientist! The show interspersed fashion performance with singing, dancing, posing and science facts.
Marcus Reeves
Marcus Reeves brought us a live incarnation of his forthcoming debut solo album, Quicksilver, in the form of ‘Masquerade Macabre’. A dazzling show with costume changes, special guests and lots and lots of glitter.
Melody La Rouge
Diva chanteuse Melody La Rouge presented a tribute to Kander and Ebb in ‘Kiss of the Red Menace’. Ms La Rouge performs in the grand tradition of power singers such as Liza Minelli and Chita Rivera, with an astonishing vocal range and commitment to rival the greats. Her show featured classic songs of stage/screen from Chicago, Cabaret and many more.
Miss Hope Springs
Recovering showgirl Miss Hope Springs returned in a new one wo/man musical comedy play, ’Miss Hope Springs … je m’appelle Hope’, which was written and performed by Ty Jeffries. Featuring original songs, this was the continuing story of Hope’s ‘Ritz to the pits’ saga and we found her just back from Paris where she was playing and singing in a very seedy Pigalle nightclub…
Morris and Vyse
Morris and Vyse brought us ‘Daylords’ their 2010 sell-out Edinburgh show based on a disastrous daytime TV show of the same title. It was a high energy, accessible and outstanding sketch show which had the unusual addition of a succinct narrative. Daylords saw Morris and Vyse introduce ten extraordinary characters..
The Mustdashios
The Mustdashios performance, ‘Chips’, delved into the friendship of two young women who live for booze and sequined pants. Through witty observations and discerning movement, Chips exposed the less attractive side of human nature as they took us on a journey in which they danced, laughed and cried their way through an intoxicated friendship.
Myra Dubois
Myra presented ‘From Rotherham With Love’ … Picture the scene. Rotherham. Some time ago. Amidst the smoky world of the Working Men’s Clubs, there’s a small town blonde with big time dreams. Weaving her way through the punters each evening, she collects glasses for a living, always keeping one eye on the stage. That’s where the cabaret turns perform: that’s where she wants to be.
Mzz Kimberley
Voted best cabaret artist this year by the Boyz awards, Mzz Kimberley took to the stage in her live one woman show, accompanied by musical director Richard Link. The evening included songs by Mzz K’s favourite divas, from Bassey to Billie Holiday.
New Room Theatre
‘Are You Happy Now?’ was a play written and directed by Samantha Wright; performed by Mark Jeary and Mark Booth. ‘In the claustrophobia of a seemingly inescapable train station waiting room, two actors explore the imperfect relationships of four men. This challenging play is ultimately about loss, and how we can have very different ideas of what love is.’
Oliver Meech
With his show ‘Live Brain Surgery, Oliver Meech mixed magic with neuropsychology. We experienced freaky neurological phenomena, gruesome surgery and incredible tricks. Think ‘Being John Malkovich’ crossed with ‘Memento’ and you’re half way there.
Ophelia Bitz
Potty-mouthed pin-up, Ophelia Bitz chaired an evening of antique porn and mass debate with ‘Art Wank’. ArtWank dishes up Super-8 locker-room sing-alongs, rare vintage smut and competitive cabaret sex acts and was hailed as “Immoral genius” by The Erotic.
Polari
Paul Burston’s ‘Polari’ pitched up at the HAF with spoken word performances from Sophia Blackwell, Christopher Fowler and Karen Mcleod. Polari was described as “London’s peerless gay literary salon” by the Independent on Sunday, and “London’s most theatrical salon” by the New York Times.
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[Re:artzzZ] presented ‘Grindhouse’, an evening of celluloid performances inspired by early cinema. In ‘Dial M…’ Greg Tate told his brooding story of love, terror and obsession through the sepia portal of a shamanic exorcism. Followed by Asta Nielsen is dead [a silent movie], where Lady Pumpernickel and Miss Carrota suffer from the tragedies of love.
Sheila Lord
Sheila Lord is a singer/songwriter with an atmospheric acoustic sound. Sheila has accomplished many musical achievements – in June 2008, she was selected from over 2000 unsigned artists to perform at the major UK summer festival Beach Break Live along with The Enemy, The Cribs, The Wombats, Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip and many more.
Son of a Tutu
Winner of Drag Idol 2011, Son Of A Tutu is an illegal immigrant from Lagos Nigeria on the run. In her shows (Miss Tutu’s Turn) she presents a hysterical no-holds barred insight into the life of a wanted wanton woman, using a series of sung and spoken vignettes that lay bare in politically-incorrect glory, the many cogs and clogs that define the very “British multiculturalism experience”.
Ste McCabe
Ste McCabe’s ‘Queer Riot’ was a live music night featuring the most exciting and uncompromising underground queer bands from across the country. The night featured sets from electro and punk rock bands such as Atomizer, Maria and the Gay, Candy Panic Attack and Ste McCabe himself.
Tricity Vogue
Tricity Vogue transformed herself into Tretchikoff’s kitsch masterpiece The Chinese Girl for ‘The Blue Lady Sings Back’, where she sang and danced us through the story of how she became so blue. Featuring beloved songs in unexpected guises, alongside some little-known musical gems, the blued-up Ms Vogue showed us how much fun it is to live outside the box, or at least outside the frame.
UnderConstruction
UnderConstruction, the highly acclaimed and hugely popular alternative performance platform for new work, curated a show especially for the Hot August Fringe. The show featured 10 compelling performances selected from Bistrotheque’s 2011 season of UnderConstruction.
Voodoo Mick
Voodoo Mick is a musical mindreader and a singing psychic. Half of the Voodoo Mick Variety Show was a public demonstration of seemingly psychic phenomena, drawing on 15 years experience of delivering psychic messages. The other half was be a pop-tastic sing-a-long extravaganza, making this truly a 1-man, 1-hour variety show!
Waiting for Bono
Miss Hypnotique and John Callaghan, England’s top performers of ‘Eccentronica’ – a quirky mix of electronic music and offbeat humour – entertained us with absurd electronica mash-ups and spooky theremin. Waiting For Bono mixed up musical comedy, improvisation and cabaret in a bucketful of nonsense (with a cheeky nod to playwright Samuel Beckett).
Wotever Sex
What do we love and who do we do? Running on five Tuesday nights throughout the HAF 2011, Wotever Sex provided a lighthearted look into sexual education – how to do it, what others done before us and what they have learned. Guest performers included Del La Grace Volcano, CN Lester and Lazlo Pearlman.
