Arts Guide 18, Briggs 20, Sofi Tukker

Australia has a love affair with Sofi Tukker. Chuck on the radio, you’ll probably hear a Sofi Tukker track or two, they’ve played some memorable shows at the iconic Groovin The Moo over the years, and their hits ‘Drinkee’ and ‘Purple Hat’ have each reached platinum on the ARIA charts.

WET TENNIS, or When Everyone Tries to Evolve, Nothing Negative Is Safe, is the perfect follow up to their debut, and is the perfect album for these times, a positive journey featuring a soundtrack that’ll make you want to get up and move. A versatile record, WET TENNIS also sees the duo dipping their toes into mellower moments.

“It feels amazing to have the album out,” Sophie, (Hawley-Weld, vocals and guitar) says. “We’re on tour right now, and it’s great to be playing the music every night, it’s exciting, it’s been a long time in the making. “We also created a whole WET TENNIS production show where we’re on a tennis court with a scoreboard, really living the WET TENNIS world. “I play a scoreboard like a drum set,” Tucker (Halpern, percussion) adds, “and it triggers sounds and video, and it’s really fun to see this idea we thought of during the pandemic be out there in the world.”

WET TENNIS could be considered a lockdown baby. Sophie notes the extended free time thanks to the years of self-sequestration was the perfect opportunity to finish all their unfinished music from years prior.

“We were working on WET TENNIS from before lockdown, so a lot of the songs are from life and personal experiences. We spent a lot of time during the pandemic looking at songs we had started, and just finishing them, adding new elements and stuff.” The title track ‘Wet Tennis’ has been a clear fan favourite thanks to its sensual horns and infectious hook. “‘Wet Tennis’ was the last song we wrote and we had already named the album,” Sophie notes. “We knew what we wanted the world to look and feel like.

“We were in our house, just kind of goofing around, and Tucker started singing ‘Bring your hips to life’ in a really bad boy-band accent.

“We wanted a fun song that would make people smile while dancing, it didn’t need to be emotional, it didn’t need to be deep, we just wanted to have fun on a song, but we felt like it was almost too electronic. So we went to Miami, and we got a bunch of incredible musicians to play, we got real incredible horn players to play, like a whole orchestra.” “It was a little linear, and we felt like it needed that funk, the groove that is just impossible to make from a computer,” Tucker adds.

WET TENNIS features the stylings we’ve come to love, but at times the album ventures into reflective territory, with a calming ‘Interlude’, and a cover of ‘What a Wonderful World’.

“Sometimes things come from totally opposite vibes,” Tucker mentions. “‘Interlude’ was originally written for a bridge in a dance song, we loved it so much, but it didn’t fit in the energetic fun song.

“We make music that feels right in the moment. We just follow what we’re inspired by, and ‘What a Wonderful World’ and ‘Interlude’ felt really organic and natural. “We didn’t want to just lose it, so we just repurposed it, then it had its own vibe. It was written to an upbeat, bouncy song. You never know how things are going to come out” The features on WET TENNIS come through hard and strong; Mahmut Orhan, John Summit, BOII, Amadou and Mariam, and even Tucker’s dad each make an appearance across the record. “The one we did with SOFI TUKKER Amadou and Mariam was really just a small musical chunk, then we went back and forth, it Sofi Tukker bring their WET TENNIS world expewas very ‘from the beginning’,” Tucker says. rience down under and the party continues “Then there’s ‘Sun Came Up’ with John Summit, where with their sophomore release. we had a full demo of the song for a while, and never Words by Ben Lamb knew what to do with it. Then we were chatting with him on Instagram and sent him the demo, and he just took it that final step to make it feel so good.” The pair will be hitting The Forum and Splendour In The Grass this month with a show you’re not likely to forget. “It’s a whole world that we’re bringing, it’s super high energy. It’s a bit of a competition. You never know who’s going to win,” Sophie adds. “It’s fun. There’s a crazy energy. People should prepare to get Credit Elizabeth Miranda sweaty, wear some comfy shoes, if you think you might not be jumping that high, I’ll force you to.” Tucker says with a laugh. “We feel so lucky that people come to the shows and are just so joyous, it’s a really amazing culture.” WET TENNIS is out now via Ultra Music. Sofi Tukker are playing Splendour In The Grass and are hitting The Forum on July 23.

Credit Jeff Busby

Witty, funny and with social commentary thrown in for good measure, it’s all the beats that you love and expect from Cinderella, with some twists that keep this particular production entertaining.

Originally written for television with Julie Andrews in the leading role, Cinderella made its long-awaited Broadway debut in 2013 with a new book by Douglas Carter Beane and direction by Mark Brokaw.

Superb orchestrations, beautiful vocals, spectacularly smooth set transitions and jaw-dropping costume changes are the highlight of the musical, with the reveal of the Fairy Godmother being a particular highpoint. As well as the inclusion of a redeemable step-sister, Cinderella provides commentary on the nature of class through the added character of Jean-Michel, a revolutionary concerned with wealth equality.

A welcome addition to this version of Cinderella is added depth to the character of Prince Topher, played by the charming Ainsley Melham. In this version, parallels are drawn between the two leads – the kind-hearted Ella, played beautifully by Shubshri Kandiah, is bullied by her evil stepmother while the prince is pushed around by his scheming and cunning royal advisor. The union of Ella and Prince Topher feels deserved, a meeting of two generous and sympathetic people in a world that values cruelty.

Cinderella herself has more agency in this version of the story – it’s her initiation of the meeting of the Prince and Jean-Michelle that is the catalyst for change in the kingdom. Interestingly, when running away from the banquet at the stroke of midnight, Cinderella takes her own shoe off and makes the active and intentional decision to leave it behind for the prince to take. I really liked the raccoon and fox turned footman and driver – their transformation from delightful little puppets into men that leap and flip around the stage with impressive acrobatic talent left me smiling. An engaging and enchanted production unabashedly about the power of kindness and the presence of good in the world, you’ll walk out of Cinderella humming every tune and believing in everyday magic.

Cinderella is showing at The Regent Theatre until July 22.

Credit Daniel Bould

Kip Williams’ adaptation of The Picture of Dorian Gray is a truly unforgettable performance. Equal parts funny and gripping, every element of this incredibly ambitious piece of stagecraft comes together for a flawless show.

Based on Oscar Wilde’s century-old fable of the same name, it’s bought to life by Eryn Jean Norvill, who takes the lead in a role unlike anything else I’ve ever seen before. Playing 26 characters, she populates the world of the story in a spectacular performance that will be remembered as perhaps one of the greatest on an Australian stage.

A one-person adaptation is a genius choice for Wilde’s gothic parable about the obsession with the self, exploring the themes of vanity and perception that warps one’s self-worth. Her playing multiple actors is introduced delicately – dressed in a black shirt, Norvill switches in the opening scene between the artist Basil Hallward and aristocrat Lord Henry by swapping between holding a paintbrush and cigarette respectively. As the play hurtles on, Norvill melts and shapeshifts before our eyes, shifting, changing and evolving to play multiple characters at once in an Olympic feat of performance. Live video is seamlessly blended with pre-recorded footage, as Norvill interacts with videos of herself, even arguing and bickering with said recordings in moments of fourth-wall-breaking levity.

The timelessness of Wilde’s story is bought to the forefront in the set design – while very much rooted in Victorian aesthetics at the start, the stage warps from traditional Gothic dress and sensibility into more modern glitz and glamour. A highlight is when in a moment of panic, Gray steps into a hansom cab, the scenery around him shifting from a gas lit London at the turn of the 19th century to a modern, neon, sky-scraper filled city. If you only see one play this year, it should be Kip Williams’ adaptation of Dorian Gray.

The Picture of Dorian Gray is showing at Arts Centre Melbourne until July 31.

Words By Sidonie Bird de la Coeur