It's not often that you get a music performance that features drumming.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Other instruments have their moment in the spotlight, but aside from the odd solo, drums - and percussion in general - tend to be the background instrument dictating the pace and rhythm.
That's one of the things that sets Drummer Queens apart. Drums are the key element to performance and are only accompanied by other percussion instruments and minimal backing tracks.
The show then combines the drum-focused music with an overall theatre experience by adding in dancers, light shows and even comedy to make it a stage spectacle.
Finally, Drummer Queens - as the name suggests - is completely casted by female performers, with the drummers coming from different backgrounds, including Canberra-born Niki Johnson.
But despite her career, drums weren't the first instrument Johnson picked up. It was the piano - which she started playing in primary school - that introduced her to music.
"But I didn't practice that much," she says.
"It was my piano teacher who suggested that maybe I should do some percussion lessons because I was interested in rhythm. And that was that.
"I think rhythm excites me because of how it can fit in a groove situation. It can be danceable but also I like how it can be complicated. I find it interesting and engaging to listen to and think about."
The classically trained musician is one of eight women in the Drummer Queens cast, all of whom both dance and drum in a bid to help dispel the myth that drumming is for males only.
READ MORE:
It's something that Johnson says is already starting to connect with audiences, in particular young families, since their first theatre tour began.
"They are excited to see female musicians and performers represented in a way that's strong and powerful and doing something that was - up until recently - only encouraged for boys," she says.
"There's a lot of girls playing the drums out there, it's just that often they're not represented or encouraged. So it's good when you get a lot of female musicians who've made it through the male-dominated industry to put on a show."
It's a stereotype that has been ever-present since Johnson first began drumming. In her younger years, she would be the only girl in her drumming classes. "I didn't think about it as being a problem because it was what I expected to be normal".
But when she continued on to study classical music at university, it became evident how male-dominated the music industry was.
"All the of the composers we would play were boys. Often the conductors would be boys. They're just a lot of gender stereotypes just within the whole institution's structure," Johnson says.
"But I had some great female teachers and role models. I think classical music was a bit different. Whereas rock music and jazz, it's a different story. It's much more male-dominated."
Drummer Queens will be at the Canberra Theatre Centre on July 2 and 3. Tickets from canberratheatrecentre.com.au.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content:
- Bookmark canberratimes.com.au
- Download our app
- Make sure you are signed up for our breaking and regular headlines newsletters
- Follow us on Twitter
- Follow us on Instagram