Fandom and burlesque collide in Cirque Du Cosplay
The geeky gets freaky this weekend in the first Adelaide Fringe show produced by anime and gaming festival AVCon.
AVCon has been running events in Adelaide for 22 years but this weekend it’ll debut Cirque Du Cosplay, its first show in the Adelaide Fringe.
Producer and host of the show, Starling Strix, says most of the cast are local performers who have grown up with AVCon.
“This collaboration has really been something special for all of us,” Starling says.
The show, which runs for two nights only on the Fringe’s closing weekend, is a cheeky take on pop culture characters with elements of circus, fire arts, burlesque and drag.
Starling Strix is a producer and performer, you may recognise them as Mothman from the cover of our Festival edition of CityMag.
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Starling says the performance “is a natural progression from the world of cosplay”.
“You’ve stepped into this character’s clothes, so now it’s time to bring them to life through movement,” Starling says.
“A lot of these characters, especially in anime and video games, are constantly doing amazing acrobatics and flashy moves, so it’s really perfect for a circus performer.
“In fact, my own journey as a circus performer only started after a decade of regular cosplay, because I wanted to take my portrayal of these athletic, acrobatic characters to the next level.”
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Starling says their favourite character in the show is “one of the more niche acts for a Fringe audience”.
“I just couldn’t say no when Heidi Gun pitched me an act based on Pyramid Head,” Starling says.
“He’s this monster from psychological horror series Silent Hill, and he just has such an iconic design and ominous, terrifying presence that he’s perfect for the stage.
“It’s also such a perfect fit for Heidi, a local burlesque performer with the most high-energy, electric stage presence, and we’re lucky to get her debut performance of this act!”
Cirque Du Cosplay is hosted by Starling and Diana Divine, with a cast including 2024 Miss Exotic World and World Pole Champion Fawn Phoenix, and MX Burlesque SA 2022 Saskia.
“I’m also so proud to have put together a talented, diverse cast for this big top show, representing how diverse nerds really are – despite stereotypes that only a specific type of person can be a nerd, or a geek, or a gamer,” Starling says.
AvCon presents Cirque Du Cosplay is playing at the Octagon in Gluttony on Friday, March 21 and Saturday, March 22 at 11:15pm.