Stir Q&A : TRANSFORM Cabaret Festival core artist Chelsea Rose talks Bash
How to take a genre-defying variety show into the virtual world.
Singer, actor, and storyteller Chelsea Rose has a go-to answer for people who ask her what kind of artist she is.
The TRANSFORM Cabaret Festival presents Opening night Bash: Second Week at 7 p.m. on October 1 via thecultch.com.
THE VIRTUAL VARIETY show known as the Bash party returns Thursday night to your living rooms.
We talked to TRANSFORM Cabaret Festival core artist Chelsea Rose about the second annual extravaganza. You’ve seen the singer, actor, and storyteller of Cree, Métis, and European descent in everything from the Arts Club Theatre Company’s critically adored Redpatch to Fighting Chance Productions’ rockin’ Rent to the symphonic metal band Ophelia Falling. But the Bash celebration, now in its second iteration, is its own magical beast—a wild mix of theatre, music, drag, burlesque, circus, comedy, and much more. Thursday night’s edition spans digital showings by the likes of Le Gateau Chocolat, Candy Palmater, Virago Nation, Quanah Style, Kimmortal, Lynx Chase, and JB the First Lady. In short: expect the unexpected.
Here’s what Rose had to tell Stir about the show.
Describe what Bash is in three words.
Diverse. Provocative. FUN!
What was the energy like last year onstage together and how are the performers trying to tap some of that again this year through digital?
The energy onstage last year was electric. It’s not often artists from such diverse performance and cultural backgrounds are brought together. I’m not going to lie, it’s difficult to find the same electricity when performing for a handful of people and a camera. However, when we were brought together to pitch our ideas for the Bash, the electricity was recharged as we realized what an incredible and diverse show we were creating.
What do you like about cabaret as a form, and how have you seen it evolve?
Cabaret is an artistic kaleidoscope. You get to work with and observe performers you might never ordinarily. It can often feel disjointed and even isolating, but with Transform there’s a new ebb and flow between acts; we’ve all collaborated and incorporated each other into our performances, making the transitions both unpredictable and perfectly seamless.
Like so many of the Transform fest artists, you jump between art forms. How do you respond when someone asks you what you do?
Ha, that depends on what I’m working on and who’s asking. I usually call myself a “performer” which helps to deflect the invariably subsequent question of “what would I have seen you in?”.
What are you doing 15 minutes before performing?
I like being the first to arrive (two hours pre-performance) so I can turn on some calming music, sip tea, stretch and warm up, and take time to quiet my mind.
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