Circus caught in act
Adults-only risque cabaret sure to lift the roof on this big top
TREMENDOUS adversity has been overcome to ensure that Townsville audiences are left awe-struck by the dazzling entertainment spectacle known as Infamous.
Taking place under the Spiegel big-top tent, positioned at the corner of Woolcock St and Duckworth streets in Garbutt, Infamous is an adultsonly cabaret circus show combining “sexy circus acts, raunchy dancing, and cheeky comedy”.
Born into a circus family, Infamous director Joseph Ashton, 54, put the show together in Perth after years spent travelling, gathering skills and inspiration.
“I’ve been lucky enough to travel the world, so I just pinch ideas from what I’ve seen all around the place and I put the show together and hope that it works,” Mr Ashton said.
“It was so popular that we’ve just kept going (around the country). It’s an adult’s night out. It has singers, dancers, acrobats, trapeze artists, contortionists, and it’s comedy.
“You usually have to go to a capital city to see a show like this one, it’s just that we’ve been fortunate enough to be able to tour it.”
Things haven’t gone according to plan for the Infamous crew, who became stranded in Queensland for the past two years due to restrictions around the pandemic. “It’s been very strange times. We were the first things to close down to Covid and we’re the last thing really to get to be underway again,” he said.
While they were fortunate to be in Queensland, training and still able to put on shows with reduced audiences, they suffered in 2021 due to the impact of Omicron’s spread when the borders reopened.
The war in Ukraine and its resultant spike in fuel prices has also hurt them financially.
“This company has 13 semi trailers of equipment with 17 caravan/dressing room accommodation units,” he said.
“Logistically, we’ve got to get that from A to B, and with the price of diesel, one of our prime mover trucks cost about $1400 to top up with diesel.
“That’s made things quite difficult as well for a touring show.”
Despite these challenges and being waterlogged by Townsville’s recent rain, Mr Ashton remained upbeat, and was appreciative of the local response. “The people in Townsville really love having an adult’s night out,” he said.
“We’re serving champagne and cocktails and all that sort of stuff, and it can be a bit risque with the burlesque and the cabaret stuff that we have.
“And then of course, we thrill them with the wheel of death and the flying trapeze and those sorts of things that you just don’t see everywhere.”
Infamous runs from Thursday to Sunday until May 8.
Visit: