Circus Girl
The Flying Fruit Fly Circus is a legendary Australian institution - the school at Albury-Wodonga from which new generations of flyers, tumblers, acrobats and clowns has come for the past twenty-odd years.
The funny thing is, however, it's only when eight girl Fruit Flies make centre stage, that you realise how often they stand back and are overshadowed by the flashier, more muscly and pushy masculinity of the boys.
This time, in a show that's been in development two years with the girls themselves, plus director Jodie Farrugia and writer Andrea Lemon, a show with a very different feel and pace has been made.
It's more theatrical and story-based than an out-and-out circus performance and lies somewhere between Daisy Pulls It Off and A Chorus Line. From a cheeky and stylish beginning with the spotlight on a pair of baby blue sequinned mules, the narrative follows the girls through a day-in-the-life of a bunch of hopefuls as they audition, then train and rehearse, train and rehearse, hone their skills and eventually try out - all eight - for the seven places available for an international tour.
Along the way characters develop and we get to know each one: cheeky, shy, clumsy, hardhead, graceful, class clown and younger girls’ idol. Each contributes colour and individual skills as well as elements of the voice-over narration that keeps their stories moving forward. When the agonising choice has to be made and one left behind, the tension is palpable.
Circus Girl is fun for all the family and particularly inspirational for young girls from age 4 to 84.
Circus Girl, Parade Theatre, Kensington to February 24; www.ticketek.com.au.
