Briefs: The Second Coming | The Rechabite | Until 16 Feb | ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Celebrating eight years of bringing their festival favourite to the west coast, the boys of Briefs return to our shores for another sparkling spectacular at Fringe World.
Most certainly, Briefs is an act we all immediately associate with our annual fringe-y festivities, and with good reason. The team’s queer circus cabaret extravaganza is a celebration of difference that brings people together, sharing a mission statement with what has now become the world’s second largest fringe festival.
In 2020, Briefs returns with The Second Coming, and the stellar cast we’ve all come to love.
The ultimate hostess, the embodiment of the fringe spirit, Shivannah (Fez Faanana) is as always at the reins. An absolute sorceress on the microphone, the drag artist whips the audience into a frenzy with her signature Ipswitch charm, preparing everyone for what’s to come with a delightfully spicy peppering of c-bombs.
After Shivannah’s wild introduction, the numbers come at the audience hard and fast. A montage of excellence in circus, cabaret, comedy and artistry, all infused with a heavy dose of queer energy.
Aerial artist Thomas Worrell gets more incredible every year, stunting high above the Rechabite audience with death-defying finesse. WA’s own Louis Biggs tantalises the audience with his body, brain and talent, while Luke Warm serves it up as Shivannah’s scantily-clad Centrelink-funded intern.
Drag seductress Dallas Dellaforce brings some more feminine energy to the stage with some remarkable drag numbers. Whether making reference to John Waters’ high-camp masterpiece Serial Mom or strutting to Roisin Murphy tunes on a treadmill, Dellaforce brings some literal fringe and a style of performance not often seen in the clubs. Burlesque superstar Captain Kidd’s renowned finale number returns to make the final splash with the audience.
This would be my fifth time seeing a Briefs show, and there is good reason the show remains a must-see for repeat offenders, and the name on everyone’s lips.
Aside from the gang’s brilliant abilities, Shivannah opens and closes the show with a reminder that this remarkable collective came together to devise a celebration of love. A response to the strange happenings in the world, a tonic for the anxieties we all face together. That essence at the core of everything Briefs Factory do is what makes their performances something truly great.
If you’ve seen a Briefs show before, make this your second coming. If you haven’t, I’m sure your first time won’t be your last.
See Briefs: The Second Coming until 16th February.
Leigh Andrew Hill is an editor at OUTinPerth, with a BA from the University of Western Australia in Media Studies & Art History. Since 2005, Leigh has studied and practiced journalism, film-making, script-writing, language, contemporary performance and visual arts. Leigh is also a freelancer writer, and producer and presenter on RTRFM 92.1.
