Hot Fat Crazy review | Melbourne Fringe Festival | Trades Hall

If being mentally unwell was as much fun as Hot Fat Crazy, I would have signed up years ago! Created and performed by Eadie Testro-Girasole and Thomas Bradford, this musical theatre comedy follows Eadie as she admits herself into a psych ward and begins to work through her anxiety and depression. But oh how we all laughed. A lot.

Testro-Girasole is absolutely charming and wins the audience over from the opening number, “Welcome to the Psych Ward”. She displays a vulnerable confidence that ground the character despite the wackiness and absurdity that takes place in this world, which makes sense given that this is based on her own psych ward admissions. Bradford is the perfect pairing to Testro-Girasole, brilliant in all of his over-the-top characters, particularly when he is Eadie's diary and as a homophobic cat. Yes, a homophobic cat.

Nothing To Lose review

When you go to see a dance show, you expect to see people who are nimble, thin and fit. You don't expect to see fat dancers on stage. However, Force Majeure have done exactly that with their show,  Nothing To Lose, which explores the physical form of larger bodied people.

The show begins with the seven performers - Claire 'Scarlett' Burrows, Julian Crotti, Michael Cutrupi, Lala Gabor, Ally Garrett, Latai Taumoepeau, Anastasia Zaravinos - asleep on stage, like animals in the wild. As the slowly awaken from slumber and realise they are being watched (by us) they begin to challenge us, staring us down as they walk around the stage saying "fuck you" if you don't like this.