interview STORY CARLY LUBICZ PORTRAIT ANDREW RANKIN ACTION SHOTS CHRISSY MAGUIRE
CURIOSITIES, ODDITIES, FREAKS AND BEAUTIES: THE CURIOUS WEAVE OF THE SPINDLE SIDESHOW IT’S NOT OFTEN THAT YOU HEAR FREAK SHOW, FASHION, BURLESQUE AND CABARET TOGETHER IN THE SAME SENTENCE. EQUALLY AS RARE IS AN EVENT OF SUCH CREATIVE PROPORTIONS HERE IN TOWNSVILLE, AS CAPTIVATED AUDIENCES WILL SOON DISCOVER WHEN THEY PULL BACK THE CURTAIN TO MARVEL AT THE CURIOSITIES BEHIND THE SPINDLE SIDESHOW.
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“GIVEN THAT THE GENRE IS 1930s TRAVELLING FREAK SHOW AND WE HAVE THAT SORT OF CABARET UNDERLYING FEEL TO IT, IT’S NOT SPARKLE-ARKELY” – MARY EDE
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ideshow alley-style freaks – tick. Elaborate costumes featuring feathers, beads and lace – tick. Skirts individually crafted with the finest of fabrics – tick. Smokey background, moody lighting and singers with soul – tick. Ex-Townsville talent flown in especially for the occasion – tick, tick, tick. According to its masterminds, this show-inthe-making promises to be unlike anything you’ve ever seen: “The Spindle Sideshow started off as a way to showcase my range of handcrafted skirts, but has turned into so much more than that,” tells Mary Ede ‘the Skirt’ who is one of the main drivers of the spectacular that will be staged under a ‘big top’ at Cluden at the end of this month. “Given that the genre is 1930s travelling freak show and we have that sort of cabaret underlying feel to it, it’s not sparkle-arkely. The show is an original script and enlisting such a range of acts appeals to the entire audience and offers a sense of light and shade. Plus it makes putting together something like this so much fun!”