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SHOWS:

Wednesday 30 November 7.30pm – 9.00pm AND post show lounge

Friday 2 December, 7.30pm – 9.00pm

Shows are 90 minutes with an intermission

TICKETS:

Tickets are $30/$25 and on sale now!

Age suitability: Parental discretion advised.

Content rating advise: The show contains adult and sex-positive themes, and full-frontal nudity during ACT II.

Dance Hall

From the creators of the World’s Most Provocative Variety shows, and Australia’s longest touring burlesque spectacle Caravan Burlesque, comes the whole-of-community shindig, Dance Hall!

Born out of Finucane & Smith’s love affair with regional and remote Australia, and packed with songbirds and showgirls, disco divas and dancing stars, opera arias, local legends, burlesque twirlers and go-go groovers, when the Dance Hall touring party of four (Maude Davey, Mama Alto, Jazida and Chris Burgess) roll into Tuggeranong, they’ll work with Canberra artists: Tahalianna Soward-Mahanga, Venus Mantrap, Mamma MadB, Jazida’s Fabulous Fan Dancers, Crem Dela Crop and Ravi Oli, lifting up each one – infusing them with confidence and pulling together the ultimate variety night where local Tuggeranong talent join forces with international stars in an extravaganza of song and dance.

Sweeping the whole community into Macarena madness, this enormous lineup of talent will take to the Tuggeranong theatre stage – which will be decked out in satin and velvet drapes, glowing lanterns, and disco dazzle, for a four-night season from Wednesday 30 November to Saturday 3 December, 7.30pm.

Beloved from tiny towns to bustling cities; Finucane & Smith are the unstoppable creators of the world’s most awarded provocative variety. Travelling from Havana to Horsham, London to Launceston Tokyo to Tallarook, they’ve played to 600,000 fans across 18 countries; bagged 13 awards including Cuba’s International Presentation of the Year, and broken the record for the longest Australian tour of variety since the Gold Rush. These artists know how to mix a party!

This enormous line-up of talent will take to the Tuggeranong theatre stage – which will be decked out in satin and velvet drapes, glowing lanterns, and disco dazzle. Join us for an unmissable night out, where local artists steal the limelight from international stars with over 50 dance & theatre awards behind them.

Post Show Lounge

Join us for a post-show catch up with the touring company of Finucane & Smith’s Dance Hall.
Led by Maude Davey, the touring cast will share their insight into working in the Australian entertainment industry, inviting local artists to take part in the discussion and learn about how some of Australia’s leading cabaret artists have honed their artistry and careers. When: Wednesday, November 30
Immediately following the show

Finucane & Smith

Finucane & Smith Unlimited are Australian legends of Unrealistic Art. With their unique blend of provocation and entertainment, the company works across myriad artforms – from cabaret & burlesque to drama and hybrid and immersive art events; engaging unique and extraordinary artists, and cherishing audiences everywhere as they explore humanity, hope, freedom, power, desire and a shared future.

Finucane & Smith’s work has been presented in 18 countries, winning acclaim in 13 languages and 15 awards including The Patrick White Playwright Award, 8 Green Room Awards, International Theatre Institute’s CHAMACO Award for International Presentation of the Year 2015 (Cuba), and the Climakaze Award (Miami) for outstanding art in climate justice. Their genre-defining variety works The Burlesque Hour & Glory Box have been seen by 600,000 fans worldwide, becoming the first Australian work invited to major festivals of Latin America, Japan and Europe, and winning awards worldwide.

REVIEWS:

“Sheer variety and changes of pace ensure there is something to enthrall all” ★★★★★Time Out

“Seductive, subversive and bursting at the seams with monstrous talent” ★★★★The Age

“I cannot express how exhilarating and uplifting this show is” ★★★★★ Planet Arts

“Bursting at the seams with talent” ★★★★ The Age

TOURING ARTISTS:

MAUDE DAVEY

Maude Davey in Finucane & Smith’s Dance Hall. Photo Paul Dunn

MAUDE DAVEY trained as an actor at the Victorian College of the Arts (VCA) and has worked as an actor, director and writer for more than thirty years, with her primary focus being the creation of new work. Recent directing credits include: Cloud Nine by Caryl Churchill, for the VCA graduating company 2021; Marvellous, by Meredith Rogers, Hester Joyce and Maude Davey for La Mama 2021; and the acclaimed Gender Euphoria for Melbourne Festival 2019 and Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras 2020. Acting includes: Anthem, by Andrew Bovell, Patricia Cornelius, Melissa Reeves, Christos Tsiolkas, Irine Vela for the Melbourne, Sydney and Perth Festivals 2019/2020; and Melancholia by Declan Greene for Malthouse, for which she received a Green Room Award. She has worked extensively in variety, as member of Finucane & Smith’s Glory Box/Burlesque Hour ensemble and recently in her own award-winning outfit, Retro Futurismus. She works as an actor in theatre, television (Five Bedrooms, Offspring, Summer Heights High), and film (My Year Without Sex, Noise). She has also been the Artistic Director of two small theatre companies (Vitalstatistix Theatre Company in Adelaide and Melbourne Workers Theatre). She received a Masters in Writing for Performance from VCA in 2016 and is currently undertaking a PhD at La Trobe University.

BEDE NASH

Bede Nash of Finucane & Smith’s Dance Hall

With 13 years of gymnastics training, Bachelor of Circus Arts from the National Institute of Circus Arts (NICA), Bede Nash is an award winning circus performer. Bringing a unique world class blend of acrobatics, hoop manipulation and sassy looks to the stage. He enjoys the thrills and gravity defying nature of circus arts, as well as the connection between performer and audience. Bede performs with a captivating sassy, energetic and award-winning style. Having performed across Australia, and the world, even for King Charles and Camilla, he combines fast paced juggling, tumbling, and a killer smile with a dazzling on-stage persona, and a cheeky wink.

JAZIDA 

Jazida burlesque bombshell of Finucane & Smith’s Dance Hall. Photo by Damien Geary

Cabaret lightning rod and burlesque superstar, Jazida is renowned for her rapid fire, electrifying performances stampeding across magic, burlesque, fire-eating, sword dancing and fan twirling. She has astonished audiences across Australia. Voted in the global top 50 of burlesque’s most influential artists, her company Jazida Productions has opened an alternate performance hub in Canberra, Flazéda, which runs packed out classes live and online celebrating the moving beauty of every single body and winning Canberra Local Business Awards for Outstanding Performing Arts.

CHRIS BURGESS

Entertainer Extraordinaire – Chris Burgess

Chris Burgess (he/they) is a Naarm based cabaret artiste, professional music theatre performer and a practising yoga teacher. A graduate from Showfit and VCA Music Theatre with a bachelor’s degree plus Honours, Chris recently toured in ‘Do You hear The People Sing’ which played at the Sydney Opera House and Melbourne Arts Centre, he performed with Meow Meow and the MSO at Hamer Hall in ‘Meow Meow’s Pandemonium’, starred in his highly successful self-devised cabaret ‘LENNOX: Legend In My Living Room’ which toured Chapel Off Chapel in 2021/22 and the Palais-Hepburn 2022 and regularly performs as a member of Finucane and Smith’s ‘Dance Hall’. Alongside his performance career, Chris
is currently exploring the intersection of therapeutic arts practice and performance by facilitating guided acting classes.

Local Artists:

JAZIDA & HER  FABULOUS FAN DANCERS

Fan Dancers

Cabaret lightning rod and burlesque superstar, Jazida is renowned for her rapid fire, electrifying performances stampeding across magic, burlesque, fire-eating, sword dancing and fan twirling. She has astonished audiences across Australia. Voted in the global top 50 of burlesque’s most influential artists, her company Jazida Productions has opened an alternate performance hub in Canberra, Flazéda, which runs packed out classes live and online celebrating the moving beauty of every single body and winning Canberra Local Business Awards for Outstanding Performing Arts. 

CREME DE LA CROP

Karliea Decker

Crem De La Crop is performed by Karliea Decker is a proud Aboriginal woman, and multi-talented artist across the fields of dance, clowning, directing, and writing. Karliea has more than 10 years experience as a performer. Having focused on a variety of dance styles under the respective umbrellas of belly dance and burlesque, Karliea has worked as a performer, choreographer, producer, and teacher. In burlesque she has also worked as a mentor, act consultant, and competition judge. A graduate of École Philippe Gaulier with a demonstrable talent for directing and clowning, Karliea has co-written the exciting new intersectional theatre comedy show Abu Salim.


RAVI OLI

Drag King, Ravi Oli

Ravi made his debut on Get Down in Lockdown with Flazeda HUb. Since his debut, Ravi has been stealing the limelight all around Canberra, especially as Santa Chari during Christmas. Ravi has been dancing all his life and most recently danced into your hearts as the Crown Winner at the April Fool’s Drag Pageant. He’s won many hearts with his exciting moves and devilish looks.  Ravi Oli is a sleek and Suave Drag king. Ravi meaning sun and Oli meaning Light, Ravi Oli will beam into your hearts with the brightest smile. Ravi is a cheeky and dapper ethnic who thrives from being in the spotlight but craves to drag you away to a candle lit corner to woo you one on one.

TAHALIANNA SOWARD-MAHANGA

Tahalianna Sowward-Mahanga

Tahalianna Soward-Māhanga is a proud Wiradjuri and Tongan girl aged 16yrs old. She has been singing, dancing, and performing on stage since the age of six, with her first solo singing performance at the National Museum of Australia for NAIDOC week.

Tahalianna has backed many artists in her young years, she has danced interstate and represented her state at Hip Hop International, Battlegrounds, and Australian Dance Crew Championships taking out 2nd place solo and 1st place Mega Crew at the age of 10.

To date Tahalianna has performed at live at Art Exhibitions, Art IRL events with the National Gallery of Australia, Annual Ball Gala’s, Battlegrounds Hip Hop Competitions, Burrundi Theatre Opening, Cocktail Events, End of Year Performances for Dance Schools, Hip Hop Benefit shows, Multicultural Festivals, Narrungdera Earth Festival, National Conferences for Organisations and Government, National Sorry Day Events, Pacifica Events, School Assemblies, Survival Day Events, Talent Shows, TEDx, The Voice, Warangesda Musical Theatre Production, Weaving Art Exhibitions, Woolloomoolivin Festival, Youth Conferences and Youth Award Ceremonies.

Performing is one of Tahalianna natural talents. When she is on stage, Tahalianna’s soul lights up and shines through in every performance she attends. She has a natural ability to connect with the audience and move people through her powerful voice, soft nurturing ways and connection to the songs she performs. Tahalianna is a young lady who is extremely dedicated to her performance career. Tahalianna’s integrity means everything to her, and she always approaches her performances with professionalism, respect, gratitude, excitement and always feels honoured for the opportunities she is blessed to receive.

VENUS MANTRAP

Venus Mantrap

Venus Mantrap is a drag performer whose work spans folk, rock and pop styles. Venus paints hilarious and sometimes heart-wrenching portraits of life behind the lashes.

We need your support

Tuggeranong Community Arts Association is a community-based not-for-profit organisation with a 25-year history. We pride ourselves in supporting your local arts community. We embrace personal expression and diversity. We have a focus on participation and accessibility and helping to shape a sense of pride in the local community. You can help us by joining us in promoting community art and supporting local artists.

Help us to support your arts community