|Naked As The Day They Were Born Again! | The Wau Wau Sisters|
|Written by Julia Hern|
|Saturday, 11 February 2012 02:34|
I wonder if I was the only person that didn’t know anything about The Wau Wau sisters before they burst into the Spiegeltent, Naked As The Day They Were Born Again!, and danced through the crowd offering sweets on silver trays. My jaw dropped to the floor and I barely picked it up for the duration of the 60 minute, mind blowing performance experience that had the whole crowd in fits of laughter. I loved it so much, I went twice!
After an exuberant opening dance routine involving a paddling pool and lots of glitter, then an introductory ice breaker, the (still naked) sisters calmed the atmosphere with a sweet a capella love song about trust and companionship. Of course, they didn’t just stand and sing it, Tanya got on Adrienne’s shoulders and they walked to the trapeze bar hanging from the centre of the tent, where Tanya gave us a gentle taste of the acrobatic feats that were in store.
Because of the family references in their stand up comedy routine, it’s hard to know what to believe, but I’ve read that the US duo, Adrienne Truscott and Tanya Gagne are in fact half sisters. They have the same father and different mothers. As they embraced to sing the conclusion of the sweet opening number, their closeness and camaraderie was actually quite touching.
Moving into the body of the show, they donned wigs, hats and cowgirl costumes and brought us some country music with large portions of tongue in cheek smut. They called themselves an “acro band”, which (by their own definition) means that they sing songs while they turn tricks.
With the crowd well and truly warmed up, they selected 2 bearded men from the audience to become the focus of the rest of the show. On both nights I went, the volunteers were tremendous and willingly participated in the cross dressing capers and acrobatics. They lapped up the attention from the girls and their instant stardom with the crowd.
To finish up, the sisters adorned themselves in the clothes they had taken off of their “man props” and adopted the persona of each of their volunteers. They even had a fair crack at an Aussie accent. They concluded the show with a sequence of trapeze acts that had us gasping with fear, spontaneously applauding and marvelling at their prowess.
Although they both hammed it up for the crowd and pretended that the acrobatic poses were challenging them, there wasn’t a move that was uncontrolled or risky. These girls were indefatigable in their athleticism. Their lithe bodies were a thing of immense beauty and it was a treat to be able to see each muscle contract and relax as they mounted each new position.
As foul mouthed and risqué as these girls seem to be on stage, I actually have immense respect for their strength, skill, discipline, ambition and courage. As Tanya (the brunette) pulled me out of my seat to dance with her at the conclusion of the performance, I admiringly gushed “You’re an inspiration!” With every show, the sisters don’t just bring an hour’s entertainment of music, bawdy comedy and fancy tricks, they exude a sense of creativity, confidence and self empowerment that women, performers and everyone can admire.
The Wau Wau Sisters
Naked As The Day They Were Born Again!
Venue: The Spiegeltent | Urban Orchard Perth Cultural Centre Northbridge
Dates: 2 – 9 Feb, 2012
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