“Dropping houses on witches……stealing shoes from bitches.”
Intrigued yet? I am!
This comedic cabaret and its award winning creator and star, Aurélie Roque, is coming to Adelaide for the first time this Fringe. Sam About Town was lucky enough to to break into Aurélie’s busy schedule to find out more.
SAT: You won’t really drop a house on us will you? Please tell us more. Do we need to bring a hard hat?
AR: Look, I can’t promise I’ll “bring the house down” (pun completely intended), but I’m about to do my darndest! In all honesty, this all about sitting back and laughing (and sometimes crying) along with me at the bizarre stories that make up my life since my move to Australia.
SAT: How closely does this cabaret follow the story of Wizard of OZ and what was your inspiration for creating this show?
AR: Considering I moved from Kansas to Oz during a tornado (my plane almost wasn’t allowed to take off), I’ve found it very strange how similar the two adventures actually are! I’ve said it before, but I didn’t write this show; this show seems to write ME. Once I started looking at the similarities, so many more just came barreling at me. Granted, I talk more about metaphorical lions, tinmen, and scarecrows, but the coincidences are just too obvious NOT to spot. And the crazy thing is, my story isn’t over yet! Each time I’ve done this cabaret, it’s been a little different, with new stories to tell. So it’s almost like the show is a living, breathing entity.
SAT: Your Facebook page has some videos in which you share some fun facts from the original Wizard of OZ. Could you tell us one of your favourites? (See the videos here)
AR: Oh man, how can I possibly choose one?? Ok, I’ll give you one that I didn’t mention in the series: If Fox Studios hadn’t been outbid by MGM to make the film, Shirley Temple would have played Dorothy.
SAT: Who would you say this show really speaks to?
AR: The first time I did Ruby Slipper overseas, I had people coming up to me afterwards, expressing how much they truly understood and appreciated my story. As fellow immigrants, either to or from Australia, it spoke to them on a deep level. This was something beautiful that I hadn’t expected. I used to say that the show was great for anyone who wanted to sit back, have a drink, and enjoy some comedic mishap as well as a little down to earth drama, but now I’ve discovered there’s so much more to this story: To everyone who has ever moved to a new town, state, country, or traveled to a place that you find a little frightening (whether it’s due to a foreign language or culture), this show is a reminder that you are not alone. Let’s laugh and cry together about it!
SAT: Your voice has been highly praised by Stage Whispers and described as “belting” with also a lyrical soprano top register and exemplary diction. What sort of training did you undertake in developing and refining your voice and singing style?
AR: So. Much. Training. Just ask my mom and dad, who had to race me all around God’s Creation, just to get to each class! I was truly fortunate for the massive amount of time and effort my parents and instructors put into me.
Well, first and foremost was my training in Musical Theatre. I’ve been in singing lessons with I was 6, starting with my mom’s friend, who lived down the street. Then I started taking piano and voice from a lovely woman, Anne Aiken. The piano didn’t exactly stick, but the vocals sure did. I pretty much stuck to MT-style training for the next decade. Once I got to college, the conservatory I was accepted into didn’t have a Musical Theatre program (yet), so I majored in Classical Voice, which is predominantly opera-based. SOOOO outside my wheelhouse at the time. With a lot of patience and fantastic training by several coaches (part of the curriculum), I discovered a new side to my voice, and I’m still incredibly thankful that I decided to step outside of my comfort zone. At the same time (when I was of age, of course), I started working at a NY-style cabaret bar named Bar Natasha. It was there that I learned how to jazz and blues it up, as well as how to belt, which was easily the most challenging of the three.
Apologies for the super long answer, but it kind of expresses the very simple truth that training doesn’t just happen in a classroom, and that once you start training, there’s always something new to learn.
SAT: Have you always been passionate about singing and performing, or when did you realise it was “your calling”?
AR: It has, most definitely, always been my calling. Always. I honestly can’t remember a time when I didn’t wanted to perform. It was because of my mother, who noticed me singing along to commercials at a young age. She began to wonder if this might actually be a thing. They had tried sports for a hot minute (I vaguely remember being on a soccer field), but I just did pirouettes while on the field, not caring at all about where the ball was. That was when my mom decided to put me in lessons with her friend down the street.
SAT: You have a very impressive resume, including Wizard of OZ, Anythings Goes, Evil Dead: The Musical, and Fame. Could you share with us a couple of your favourite roles?
AR: My all time favorite role was Leading Player in Pippin, hands down. The role is normally played by a man, and this was well before the Broadway revival cast a woman in the role. It brought such a different dynamic to the relationship between Leading Player and Pippin. Let’s see, I would say playing Susan in Title of Show was also a major blast. As well as Morticia Addams in The Addams Family Musical. But one of the most unique experiences I’ve had was playing a (male) police officer and pirate in Pirates of Penzance in Brisbane! What a wild ride, learning how to handle makeup in order to look more masculine: how to walk, stand, dance. It was so much fun.
SAT: I assume choosing a role must be a careful and calculated process. What inspires your choices? Are there any future roles on your wishlist?
AR: There are so many dream roles and shows on my list, but we [actors] usually reach a point where it’s just maybe not appropriate for us to go for that type of role anymore; maybe we’re too old, or we just don’t look the part anymore, or we’ve moved into a different style of theatre, etc etc. There’s a million reasons. But, for every show/role that disappears, there’s two more to take its place. Theatre is constantly changing and evolving!
SAT: During your well established career, you have played alongside some very notable performers. Any funny or inspiring moments and performances?
AR: I had a truly lovely conversation with Nancye Hayes during Pirates of Penzance. We got to talking about our histories, what brought us into theatre in the first place, etc. It was inspiring.
When I was in Clay Aiken’s Christmas concert, years ago, he did his best to repeat back our names when he met the cast, a very professional way of making sure to learn names. Problem is, when he got it me, he massively botched it. I honestly can’t even remember what he called me, but it was something I hadn’t heard before. Everyone around me giggled, and when he asked what was wrong, I told him not to worry about it, and shook his hand.
While working in “Blood Bath” at Dracula’s on the Gold Coast, the director of the show knew that we (myself and the 2 other ladies in the show) are HUGE fans of Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries. What we didn’t know is that Anthony Sharpe, who played Cec Yates, had also worked at Dracula’s before, so the director got him on a video call for Mimi’s birthday (the aerialist in the show). There was just a touch of fangirling. Just a touch.
SAT: This is your first time in Adelaide. How did you locate A Club Adelaide and what is it like working with Call This Guy, particularly when you live several thousand km away and can’t just pop in for meetings or to view the venue?
AR: That’s a fantastic story. I was in town for the first time, seeing a good friend from Kansas City, Spencer Brown, in Kinsey Sicks 2 years ago almost to the day, for the Fringe Festival! At a massive shindig for the performers (thanks for getting me in, Spencer!), he introduced me to Kerry Marsh from Call This Guy, and we just hit it off. We’ve been chatting over Messenger for ages about bringing Ruby Slipper to Adelaide for almost 2 years, and I can’t believe it’s actually happening!!! And the beautiful icing on this cake is that I’m not the only Kansas Citian performing in the Festival; I just discovered that 2 good buddies, John Story & Bob Paisley, are doing a show just after mine, so we’ll be in town to catch up, plus they’re coming to see my show!! (Feel free to join me as I reciprocate, on Feb 18th, “The Professor” at Bakehouse Theatre.) It seems I can’t be in Adelaide without running into someone I know from back home.
Thanks to the wonders of the internet, keeping in contact with Kerry has been easy as pie! He’s incredible to work with, and is always ready to chat. With his expertise and reputation, I have the highest regard for him, and his keen eye. Plus, I’ve been able to handle venue issues (what it looks like, what is in the venue vs what we will need to bring) either through photos, or Kerry’s information. It’s been great!
SAT: What plans do you have for after the Adelaide Fringe?
AR: For me personally? I’ll be heading back to Brisbane to play Madame Peacock in Cluedo: The Immersive Game, choreograph the 24 Hour Musical Project, and begin rehearsals for the Wizard of Oz tour. I’ll be back in Adelaide in October as Glinda!
As for Ruby Slipper Chronicles, I’m going to continue to work hard to keep it thriving in 2019, and take it to more venues across Australia. Maybe even catch that tornado and bring in back home in the next few years.
Presented by:Call This Guy and Aurelie Roque
Ruby Slipper Chronicles is playing Feb 15-17 at
Main Room at A Club Adelaide,109 – 111 Waymouth St, Adelaide
Purchase tickets here
https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/ruby-slipper-chronicles-af2019
Visit Facebook event page here
