What's Our Story?

The general arts attending public may not even know of her past existence but there are many around the world that did. With only her website up and the limited efootprint left those curious to know of her performances will have opinions as to her worth as a cabaret performer and in today’s slick world the rawness and lack of production did not mask the message.
Fifi had a wonderful sense of humor! Fifi L’amour hit the stage in the back rooms of Melbourne’s budding cabaret culture, the Meow Meow and Uta Lempe of her time without any financial support or dressing, management or administration. Her aim was to entertain and provoke. In her early 20’s her performances extracted the essence of irreverence, audience interaction, sexuality and European-ness and planted them and herself squarely in our faces.
Some original works interspersed with Brecht and Weill plus other popular European composers, accompanied by her pianist , together audiences were assured a performance that would shake them out of their comfort zone. Both hilarious yet terrifying it was all intentional and it was all Fifi.
From some strange opera she composed her Aria titled ‘f...... You’ sung with perfect vibrato in operatic mezzo soprano voice, Fifi L’amour was so far ahead of her time that performances were never to become mainstream in Australia never to be shown on TV certainly not 30 years ago. This was why she returned to Europe to perform so often but things have changed today.

Now the opportunity to turn on tune in or attend a performance by young cabaret artists heralded as unique in Australia is there. Management and money is more available for this art form which is extraordinary and wonderful and important to the genre. These current artists are so worthy and brave enough to carry on the traditions of performers no longer with us however they too still find themselves travelling to Europe for performance opportunities.

For Fifi, who passed away on the 18th of July 2012, a few You tube clips, a website still up and the memories of people who watched Fifi work her way through a crowded cabaret room in the semi darkness singing to men and women taunting, intensely funny remain. Thank goodness. To the current cabaret clan, watch her climb up on a bar, without concern or modesty, fall on the floor get up and run for the next position, stripping off a layer of clothes to reveal another piece of character and attitude all the while singing says it all.

A woman ahead of her time is no longer with us yet one could say reborn into today’s Cabaret performers. For audiences who have never met Fifi, the opportunities to share her performances is here care of today’s technology and for those performers brave enough to embrace this style of ‘performance art’ challenge yourselves and watch the extraordinary Fifi L’amour posthumously and raise a glass in her honour. She tilled the soil for you and planted the seed. Lets hope the Australia arts industry continues to support those artists that work ‘outside the safe’
 

Last changed: at 11:18 AM