Melbourne – Lakes Entrance
As anticipated, the last week has been an absolute mess of activity. My brain is whirring, with my eyes having difficulty staying open. While I sit on my friend’s couch in Lake’s Entrance, and a storm boils overhead, I’ll go through some highlights from the past week.
1. Wicked
I remember the first time I saw this play - I would have been in early high school, and I was with my mum and sister. The three of us used to go to plays in the city together, driving or catching the train from Ballarat and making a whole day of it. I always loved that time together and I think because of it, musical theatre has a very unique place in my heart.
My sister wasn’t there this time, but I was still surrounded by family, and we were lucky to learn that it was the crew’s 200th performance in Australia. It was the first time that my uncle and one of my cousins had seen Wicked before, and the rest of us tried not to talk it up too much (which, if you’ve seen it before you’ll know is hard to do!). I also tried not to get my own hopes up as well - I remember absolutely loving this play when I was a kid, and I still remember the chills that wriggled down my spine in certain scenes, so I was careful to not let myself get carried away in that memory, anxious that it wouldn’t live up to my own hype.
Of course, it did.
Fossil and me before Wicked.
2. Wordcraft Slam Poetry
I have this friend, Ren, who could tell you a two hour long story about when she went to get a bottle of milk from the shops, and you’d be hanging off your seat the entire time, desperate to know the details. She’s a fabulous wordsmith and slam poetry champion who, three years ago, made a literary community baby called Wordcraft.
They get together every month for a slam poetry competition, and I’ve been desperate to go along and show my support for years. Finally the stars aligned and I found myself in Melbourne on the night of a slam. So, around a dingy corner of Fitzroy, in a building with decapitated dolls hanging from a tree outside and a ginger cat lounging on couches inside, I listened to spectacular humans perform art.
If I was performing, I wouldn’t have even been nervous. I was so proud of Ren for building a space where people are welcomed and accepted, and I found myself getting overwhelmed with happiness and warmth.
Wonderful Ren’s Wordcraft.
3. Homegrown Festival
Wicked on Wednesday, Wordcraft on Friday, and a mini pop-punk festival on Saturday. I was already tired, and I was about to become exhausted.
After breakfast and a walk with my old housemate and her spectacularly adorable dog, Doug, I headed to the Port Melbourne festival with an old uni friend, Simone. Even if we didn’t see any live music, this day still would have been a highlight, because every day with Simone is. I always looked up to her as someone who gets shit done and is perfectly content with precisely who she is.
Part laughing and part grimacing at our muscles not being young enough for festivals any more, we downed some cold coffees while waiting for the bus. Back when we were eighteen this would have looked vastly different - coffee would have been a bottle of vodka or Malibu, and our outfits resplendent with psychedelic disco material - but I really loved seeing how we’d changed.
We danced and chatted and approved of the fact that the loos weren’t too far to walk to from the stage. Some musical highlights here were Kisschasy singing “Dinosaur” and instantly being sent back to 2010 Tumblr, Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers for being angry girl bosses, and Slowly Slowly for everything else.
Slowly Slowly at Homegrown Festival.
