Olympic gold medalist Matthew Mitcham took to the stage to perform the cabaret offspring of his critically acclaimed autobiography ‘Twists And Turns’ as part of Brisbane’s new LGBTIQ arts festival, ‘MELT’.
The show was the story of Matt’s life, accompanied by brilliantly composed and performed covers of songs by the likes of Bertie Blackman, Marina and The Diamonds, Alanis Morisette and of course, the Spice Girls. The show was simple, having only three cast members including Matt, and no major sets. Musical director Jeremy Brennan was one of the three on stage, who played piano for the show and occasionally lent his voice to the story, playing Matt’s coach as well as several news reporters.
The great thing about this show was Matt’s willingness to be open and honest with the audience about himself, warts and all. We were taken on a journey that began with his “first love”, trampolining – which he eventually left for another mistress, diving. He conveyed his thoughts and inner demons by being joined on stage also by Spanky, or Rhys Morgan, who was an “unconvincing drag queen” that personified the addictive thoughts and feelings swimming through Matt’s head. Spanky was an interesting and comedic take on an addict’s conscience throughout an addiction.Matt told the audience of the expectations to be perfect in his career, and addressed how easy it became for him to give into the struggles of drugs and alcohol. The show flowed beautifully, and was not interrupted by set or costume changes, as there were very minimal and occurred during dialogue and music. There was just enough comedy in the show to break up the darker undertones, making the performance easy to watch, and audience participation was a strong element.
Matt’s stirring performance of ‘Little Water Song’ by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds was a point in the show in which the audience was completely still and mesmerised. The lights were all down apart from a dark blue projection of water that reflected over Matt while he moved slowly and gracefully, like a dive in slow motion. The performance of the song was a representation of Matt’s winning dive at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, and captured the emotion felt by him up to that point in his life. The applause that followed the song was perhaps the loudest of the whole show, and this was not surprising.
The rest of ‘Twists And Turns’ saw Matt admitting his addiction to his boyfriend, and finding the help he needed to overcome it, with the support of his mum “the Vivster” or “The Big V” as he affectionately called her.Matt’s ability to tell his story clearly and confidently through music and performance shone brightly in ‘Twists And Turns’ and was funny, heartbreaking, exciting and dramatic.
Four and a half out of five diving boards.
'MELT Festival' is on at Brisbane Powerhouse until 15 February.
