Kiss me it’s quick

AUDIENCE heckling isn’t usually encouraged, but at Kiss Club it’s expected, albeit in a gentle, nurturing way.

“The artists are there for the feedback, and the audience acknowledges it’s very brave to put your work out there,” CIA Studio, (Centre for Interdisciplinary Arts) special ops Finn O’Branagain says.

This is Kiss Club’s fifth year and it’s an all-ladies line up, with a mix of dance, physical theatre, performance art, and the mysteriously named “social experiments”.

The plan hadn’t been for a women-only show, but female applicants swept the board with their imaginative presentations, Ms O’Branagain says.

In 10-minute shows, seven acts will explore a sweep of themes including hoarding, selfies, parades and gender.

Each is a snippet of a larger show the artists hope, once honed, will get a guernsey at PICA or the holiest-of-holy experimental theatre, the Fringe Festival.

“They show the trickiest bit they need feedback on,” Ms O’Branagain says.

In Tiny Parades CIA Studio’s artists-in-residence Renae Coles and Anna Dunnill are two lone paraders “passionately championing ambiguous causes” on the streets.

Hellen Russo uses physical performance to explore compulsive hoarding: “[And] the attaching of meaning to objects even though they don’t have use for us any more,” Ms O’Branagain says.

Meredith Godley does more than ask for feedback, she invites her audience backstage to find out more about “selfies”.

Kathleen Szalay uses dance in a light graffiti treasure hunt and Sophia Natale looks at how a female dancer can present herself on stage as a male.

CIA’s new “house band” Blackwall Reach has written music for each mini-show and will play a 10 minute gig of their original music as a finale.

For aspiring artists/performers applying for Kiss Club is as simple as checking out the Facebook page.

“[And] describing your dream for a show [beyond] Kiss Club,” Ms O’Branagain says.

Partly government funded through the Department of Culture and the Arts, CIA offers residencies, technical and dramaturgical support (help shaping a script) and some financial help for Perth’s aspiring artists.

Kiss Club is on at CIA Studios 480 Newcastle Street, West Perth Friday April 17. Tix $10 at the door.

by JENNY D’ANGER