Dance Palace review | Finucane & Smith | Luna Park

I remember going to my first ever Finucane & Smith show back in 2010. I had never heard of Finucane & Smith before, but the title Carnival of Mysteries was too tempting to ignore. I vividly recall watching the various acts unfold, wide-eyed as I discovered this new world. But it was Moira Finucane’s performance as the Ice Queen, inside a tent, that has stayed with me most. There was something captivating about the strength and power in her voice, and I was transfixed by it. Since then, I have eagerly attended many of the performances and events created and curated by Finucane & Smith, including their current show Dance Palace, marking 30 years of their work.

Staged inside Luna Park, Dance Palace invites us into a place of exhilaration and excess, where cabaret, circus, burlesque and live music collide. It is a fitting setting for the occasion, with the faded glamour and eccentricity of the historical theme park providing the perfect backdrop for an evening that revels in the strange, the spectacular and the unexpected.

The party kicks off the moment we enter the "palace". There is an immediate sense of chaos, with performers, music, costumes and movement filling the space and drawing us into the world of Dance Palace. It is less like arriving at a show and more like stumbling into a celebration that has already well and truly got underway.

The season brings together 30 long-term collaborators and newer faces, old numbers and new ones, or at least pieces I had not seen before. Finucane revives two saucy complementary routines, one involving a meat pie and the other tomato sauce, and it is always a joy watching people pop their Finucane & Smith cherry, particularly when they have no idea what is about to happen as they are handed plastic sheets to cover themselves with.

While not a new number, it is the first time I have seen Maude Davey in full clown costume, singing Gay Marshall’s "Carousel", the carnival imagery of the song taking on a mischievous new life through Davey’s playful performance, especially against the Luna Park landscape. Later, Finucane and Davey join Yumi Umiumare to revive the warped Hello Kitty, taking the Japanese pop-culture icon into cute but decidedly creepy territory.

Bellydance–Bollywood Fusion star Raksha Parsnani is a mesmerising presence, bringing an exuberance and sensuality to the stage with her dynamic choreography, including a brilliant visual representation of krill mating. Mama Alto, another long-term member of the Finucane & Smith family, makes time stand still as she sings Joni Mitchell’s "Both Sides Now". Everything else falls away, leaving me completely absorbed in the emotive words and the beauty of her voice.

Kate Foster’s rendition of John Denver’s "Take Me Home, Country Roads" is performed in a revealing, sparkling burlesque outfit, creating a wonderful juxtaposition between the song’s familiar sentimentality and the unabashed theatricality of her appearance. Foster also shares a touching personal story of how Finucane helped her find her voice again after seven years of never singing. And it is this ability to uplift others, to encourage them to take risks and discover what they are capable of, that is at the heart of Finucane & Smith’s work.

Finucane & Smith have never received government funding, yet over 30 years they have presented 36 shows, reached more than a million audience members and taken their work to 19 countries. Those figures are impressive, but what matters more is what sits behind them: a commitment to spreading love, taking care of each other and creating room for people to be seen.

That commitment is evident in those who fill the stage. Finucane & Smith embrace diversity not as a token gesture, but as an essential part of their work, bringing together artists of different ages, body shapes, genders and cultural backgrounds. Everyone has a place here, including the audience, and we are all here trying to find our voice, connect with one another and make a little more magic in the world.

For all its wildness, Dance Palace never feels like a random collection of acts, although there are one or two moments where the energy is a little too similar, particularly when several musical numbers come in succession. For the most part, however, the variety keeps the evening moving and the quieter stretches provide welcome space to breathe between bursts of chaos.

Sixteen years after first stumbling into Carnival of Mysteries, I find myself still being surprised by what Finucane & Smith can conjure. The artists may change, the acts may evolve, but that air of possibility remains. Dance Palace is a celebration of everything the company has achieved, but more importantly, it becomes a testament to what can happen when people are given the room, encouragement and freedom to be gloriously themselves. After 30 years, Finucane & Smith continue to prove that you don't need to be big to make a mighty noise.

Read our interview with the stars of Finucane & Smith's Dance Palace here.

SHOW DETAILS

Venue: Luna Park, 18 Lower Esplanade. St Kilda
Season: until 12 September | Thurs - Sat 7pm
Duration: 130 mins with interval
Tickets: $20 - $120
Bookings: Finucane & Smith

Images credit: Angel WL