CABARET'S TOMORROW
For many people, cabaret is a dying art. It is seen as a form of entertainment destined to spend forever in dimly lit, smoky bars, being watched by a few die-hards and those who simply wandered in off the street. However, this Bogartesque image is far from the truth, cabaret is alive, vibrant and full of life and it is thanks to the next generation of performers that it is coming out of the darkness and into the light.
One of the ‘next generation’ of cabaret performers is Talent Development Project product, Brendan Irving. Born and raised in Wollongong, Brendan has already been collecting rave reviews for his work and after recently sharing the stage with Australia’s top musical theatre talent at the launch of Kookaburra Musical Theatre, is set to take to the stage with his own cabaret show, Taking The Wheel at the Statement Cabaret Lounge.
Brendan was kind enough to take time out of his busy schedule to have a chat with Stagenoise.com about preparing his first cabaret show and the future of cabaret in Australia.
Congrats on your first cabaret show, what is it about?
It’s about taking the wheel on life, relationships, adulthood and a career.
How did you go about preparing for your first show?
It was imperative to consider the nature of performance (being to entertain) and to avoid presenting a show that was strictly self fulfilling. After that, I'm not sure there is a set equation. If there was I wouldn't have spent so many late nights on material that will never see the stage!
How do you select your songs?
With great difficulty! Actually, that's not entirely true... some choices are obvious once the concepts are thought up and I understand what it is I want to communicate. Searching through my music collection was a good start. I would constantly remind myself that the pieces of music I wanted to present needed to mean something to me as well as being a suitable medium to express my message to the audience.
How do you work with your Musical Diretor Peter McVie?
We work very closely together. He is the most easy going musician of his calibre I have ever had the honour of working with. Peter McVie is a musical genius! Not only does he play piano flawlessly and beautifully, he is very experienced in arranging music and operating musical technology. Because of this, I can trust that anything he produces or any ideas, opinions and suggestions of his will work. His musical knowledge leaves me for dead. He has this knack of taking a piece of music and after hearing my spin on it and what context I would perform it in, he recreates it.
Can you explain what some of the songs mean to you in your show?
The songs are a lifetime of my exposure to various genres/ages of music. From artists which my Mother would play when I was a kid (Cold Chisel and Elton John), to composers that changed my perspective on musical theatre (Jonathan Larson - Rent, William Finn - A New Brain, John Bucchino), to the popular music that I love to listen to (Keith Urban and Josh Groban). My musical journey seems to be a link consistent through the majority of the pieces in the show.
What do you think of cabaret as an artform?
I'm so thankful I discovered it sooner rather than later. It is so raw and beautiful - a chance to perform the music you love and converse with an audience as yourself (as opposed to a character).
What do you think the future of cabaret is?
Obviously I'm completely biased (being a young, cabaret artist) but there seems to be this increased interest and respect for cabaret within performers and musicians around my age. I am in high hopes that the cabaret scene is on a huge rise.
Brendan performs his show Taking The Wheel on the 31st of August and the 1st and 2nd of September at the Statement Cabaret Lounge at 8pm. Tickets are available at the door or through Ticketmaster.
