For those of us who live in old, established Canberra (with its quaint cobbled streets) Tuggeranong still feels very young and pioneering.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
That impression is reinforced by the way in which pioneering things are still happening in Tuggeranong. Here comes, for example, the Queer Tuggeranong program of events at the Tuggeranong Arts Centre. It is part of the Silver Linings festival (from October 28 to November 7) celebrating 25 years of Tuggeranong Community Arts.
Silver Linings creative producer Julian Hobba is sure from his researches that Queer Tuggeranong is the first Tuggeranong event ever tailored to appeal to, and cater for, Tuggeranong's gay and lesbian, transgender, bisexual community.
That community is a bit of mystery but it seems highly likely, we chortled together at the arts centre on Thursday, that in a place the size of Tuggeranong there must be one or two people of that variegated community.
"There must be a least a small handful," he laughs, "at least enough to fill out a karaoke night."
We shall see, because the most flamboyant of the Queer Tuggeranong events is the Dress Up and Drag Karaoke night, of which more in just a few richly-sequined paragraphs.
"Silver Linings is a community arts project to activate different kinds of subcultures within Tuggeranong," Hobba says.
"And as I looked back through the centre's history it struck me that what the centre had always done well is its community focus. But while it had done a lot in [many areas] it struck me that it had never really created much of a space for the queer community.
"And so I thought to myself 'There must be a lot of queer people in Tuggeranong'. And so given that the centre's remit is to give everyone a chance to express themselves it may be time for something like a Queer Tuggeranong event."
This reporter gave a good-natured start of (mock) surprise at the notion of Tuggeranong having "subcultures".
Hobba agreed that, yes, it might once upon a time have been an odd notion, but that today's Tuggeranong has been transformed from what it was in the literally pioneering 1990s.
"Now it's big. I think about 100,000 people, a third of the ACT's population."
And so he's sure that there are subcultures now and that the arts centre must set about "trying to give a few different ways for that community to get involved".
For Queer Tuggeranong program is at http://www.tuggeranongarts.com/silver-linings-25-years-of-tuggeranong-community-arts/queer-gear/ those different ways include as well as the irresistible-sounding karaoke occasion, what he describes as "a literary lounge for the queer literati". Then there's to be a screening of the French feature film Ma Vie En Rose (My Life In Pink) about a transgender girl who can't wait to grow up.
And the evening of the Drag Karaoke will begin with Canberra's Gay and Lesbian Qwire taking part in the centre's jazz series.
Hobba agrees that "yes, it is all pioneering",
"I think we just want to show that this is a diverse community. You walk through the town centre and you notice it's a really diverse community, culturally, economically, demographically.
"And the arts centre has an emphasis on arts participation and that's where karaoke comes in. We thought 'Well, everyone anyone can sing karaoke – that's the whole point of it'.
"Tammy [local drag celebrity Tammy Paks, pictured] is the glue that holds the karaoke thing together. And we're going to have backing dancers. It's going to be totally fruity."
One of the backing dancers, David Santolin, is accomplished in a discipline called Fresh Funk that although we'd never heard of it before sounds excitingly fruity.
"On the night," Hobba rejoices, "we're going to give people a selection of songs.
"David will give people an era, '80s disco say, or '70s pop, and then within that genre people will have a selection of songs of that era/genre to choose from. And we'll have costumes that match that era, that genre of music, so that if someone chooses a Fleetwood Mac song or a Donna Summer song we've got an appropriate costume that we can kit people out in."
Both the karaokeist and his or her supporting dancers will wear the era-appropriate, genre-matching costumes.
At the very thought of it this columnist gave a little involuntary "Gosh!" and exclaimed about how it must add sparkle and glamour galore to karaoke to have backup dancers.
"Yes, it's super fun to watch!" Hobba enthuses, for he has seen it happen at an unforgettable event in cosmopolitan Brisbane.
Hobba is sure that singers bound to get a (sequinned) guernsey on the night will include "Donna Summer definitely, Gloria Gaynor obviously, Cher, and we'll have to have some Kylie [Minogue]".
A big upstairs space in the arts centre is going to be flamboyantly dolled up.
"We're going to give it a good spruce" Hobba promises.
The venue will have a sort of silver theme (already, during our interview, two girly shop store mannequins looked on, resplendent in sparkling silver-sequinned dresses and silvery bling) to pay homage to the centre's embracing Silver Linings festival.
Absolutely utterly everyone, obviously irrespective of genders and orientations, will be welcome at the karaoke occasion. However, Hobba cautions, largely thanks to the uninhibited Tammy there will be (as suggested in our suggestive picture of her) some adult themes that will make the event unsuitable for some.
Silver Linings runs from October 28 to November 7. The Drag and Dress Up Karaoke begins at 8pm on Friday, November 6. Go to Tuggeranong Arts Centre website http://www.tuggeranongarts.com/ for details.
