Author: thequeerav

Perth’s Stand Up for Safe Schools! Snap Rally [PHOTOS]

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On Monday night, March 21, Murray Street Mall was filled with people ready to show their support for the Safe Schools Coalition at the Stand Up for Safe Schools! Snap Rally. The rally was organised after the Liberal government announced plans to change, and eventually stop funding the program after 2017. Here are some photos of the rally, and of the people speaking up for Safe Schools in WA. To stay updated on issues relating to the LGBTIQ+ community in Australia,  join the LGBTIQ+ Community Action Group on Facebook here. To show your support for Safe Schools and to let the government know what you think of their recent decisions visit ineedsafeschools.org.au. Lastly, remember to look after yourself! You can seek support at Lifeline and/or QLife! .

How Can I Help Safe Schools Coalition Australia?

Published by thequeerav

As news today hit of the changes to be made to the Safe Schools anti-bullying program, people were enraged, and rightly so. Today is National Day of Action Against Bullying and Violence, ironic really, considering the Australian government just hit LGBTI youth with a major form of bullying themselves. Federal Education Minister Simon Birmingham announced changes to the program which include amending some lesson plans, restricting all program produced resources to secondary students, and resources such as “OMG I’m Queer”, “OMG My Friend’s Queer” and “Stand Out” to one-on-one counselling sessions between students and  “qualified staff” (Buzzfeed). It was also indicated that Safe Schools would not continue to receive funding after 2017. In light of this information, a lot of people are probably asking themselves, “What can I do?” I know I found myself asking the same question. To put it simply, the best form of support in this kind of situation is being vocal! Talk to your communities, educate yourself on LGBTI issues, participate in rallies and protests, and most importantly, let the government …

FRINGE REVIEW: #madashell The Musical

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Fringe World Perth went out with a bang this year with Dean Misdale’s show “#madashell The Musical” gracing the stage of Four5Nine Bar on Saturday and Sunday night to sold out audiences. The show, performed by Misdale’s alter ego Feminem,  brought to life YouTube series #madashell in comedy cabaret form, and was full of real life encounters and parody songs to boot. To the sound of some familiar tunes, and in sequinned attire, Feminem takes you on a journey of epic proportions, and gives insight into what makes her #madeashell; something not to be missed. After all, hell hath no fury like an angry drag queen. From singing about curious strangers who think it’s ok to touch drag queens without permission, to the finger lickin’ goodness that is KFC, there was something in there for everyone! And, to round off the performance: a costume change, some lip-syncing (what’s a drag show without it), and an all round bitch session on what made people in the audience #madashell. Feminem had the audience laughing from start to …

FRINGE REVIEW: Gender Spanner

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Jessica McKerlie’s “Gender Spanner” made it’s WA premiere at Perth Fringe World  on Tuesday night at The Ellington Jazz Club. The show is part burlesque, part cabaret and 100% full of “labels that just don’t stick”, a reference you’ll understand on a whole new level if you see the performance for yourself. Inspired by McKerlie’s own explorations and understanding of gender fluidity, the show touches base on areas not often openly talked about or explored in performance pieces. Armed with a ukulele and many other props (potato and gravy anyone?), McKerlie presents an honest and empowering performance filled with thought provoking ideas and questions about what it means to be a man, a woman, or somewhere in between. Though I felt some acts didn’t flow from one to the next as well as they could have, there’s no denying the acts themselves were well thought out and entertaining on so many levels. McKerlie’s ability to hold the crowds attention, and to use their quick wit to stop mid performance to clarify any misunderstandings was hilarious, leaving …

FRINGE REVIEW: PANTS! (and other things)

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Nestled in the corner of The Rosemount Hotel is Four5Nine Bar, a cosy space home to many Fringe World performances this season including Lexie McGee’s debut show; “PANTS! (and other things). I had the pleasure of going to see the show on Monday night, the third of five performances gracing the Fringe World stage, surrounded by an almost sold out crowd. Launching her self-titled debut EP, the show follows the thoughts, ideas and teachings of Lexie as she navigates her way through topics such as gender diversity, gay mermen and bowl cuts, through song and, of course, interpretive dance. The show begins with musician Maisie on stage alone with a guitar, playing the sweet introduction of the show’s first song. Lexie makes her first and very sudden appearance by bursting through the stage curtain, wide eyed and dapperly dressed, glitter and the colour red obviously key features in her outfit. The song was slow to begin, though soon picked up once the interpretive dancing kicked in, leaving the audience in fits of laughter with ever …

FRINGE REVIEW: Tom Ballard’s New Show ‘The World Keeps Happening’

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Former Triple J radio presenter and all round funny guy Tom Ballard has been gracing the stage at The Gold Digger in this year’s Perth Fringe with his brand new show; ‘The World Keeps Happening’. In his show, Ballard explores the idea that everything in this world is sinister and confusing and on the verge of collapse, all whilst providing ideas on how he could potentially solve these worldly issues. He talks about feminism, terrorism, online dating and more, all topics that hold great interest and controversy to people all over the world. However, I most enjoyed when Ballard asked the audience of their excitement about Australia Day approaching. The audience replied how any audience member should at a stand up comedy show (with little enthusiasm so as not to draw attention to themselves), at which point Ballard replied “Well you shouldn’t be,” and talked about what Australia Day (ie Invasion Day/Survival Day) really represents. Preach! Ballard’s stand up performance, though controversial at times, captivated the audience from start to finish. His jokes about his …

“ZE”: Queer as Fuck! Perth Fringe World 2016: An Interview

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Michelle/Ryan, also known as Ren, is debuting hir show, “Ze”: Queer As Fuck, at Perth Fringe World 2016. Hir show is described as a “one-person, genderqueer, kinky, femmesexual, polyminded, gay-divorcee PRIDE parade through the real life of Michelle/Ryan.” Born in Washington State and raised close to the Canadian border, Ren has been performing for a long time, acting in theatres from the age of eight or nine, and studying theatre and psychology at university. Ren came out after ze moved to Vancouver in British Columbia at age 18, and considers hir identity to be reformed around Canadian values. Having lived in Australia & New Zealand for almost two years though, ze feels this part of the world is as much like home as that part. We had the chance to talk to Ren about what to expect from hir upcoming show in Perth, the importance of pronouns, how identities in the queer community have changed of the past 10 years and MUCH MORE. Take a look! The QA: Firstly, how did the idea for the …

Interviewing Hannah Hart: The #NOFILTER Show, Being a YouTuber, Working with Whoopi and More!

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Hannah Hart is a lot of things. She’s an award winning comedian, a professional YouTuber and Internet personality. She’s an actress, producer, philanthropist and New York Times best-selling author. All of this and she hasn’t even reached 30 yet! Most would probably know her best from her My Drunk Kitchen series on YouTube (for which she’s won multiple awards). She’s currently touring Australia as part of the #NOFILTER Live show with friends Grace Helbig and Mamrie Hart. I had the awesome opportunity to talk to the very talented, funny and hardworking Hannah Hart about the show and more! Take a look below. TheQA: So is this going to be your first time in Perth? I remember the first time you announced you were coming to Australia a few years ago and there was no Perth visit. I was so devastated! HH: Yeah well last time we were in Australia it was just me and Mamrie and we were traveling with a group called Contiki, and I was doing it just making videos about each place …