cabaret

If you haven’t heard of Meow Meow yet, you are missing out. Internationally acclaimed and fiercely celebrated, she has performed everywhere from New York’s Carnegie Hall to the Sydney Opera House, Lincoln Center, the London Philharmonic Orchestra and at Shakespeare’s Globe. It’s immediately clear why she is so respected — there is truly nothing quite like her. She is indescribable in all the best ways and what an honour to see her at Perth’s International Arts Festival.

Meow Meow’s The Red Shoes begins in typical Meow fashion: she is dragged onto the stage like a lifeless prop, a theatrical object rather than a person. The audience collectively seems to wonder, What on earth is going on? Three pianos swirl across the stage and, moments later, she is balancing precariously on top of them. It feels dangerous, absurd and exhilarating all at once.

From there, we descend into the madness of Meow Meow’s mind — loosely tied to Hans Christian Andersen’s The Red Shoes, yet never confined by it. She crosses every theatrical boundary imaginable. Whether she’s climbing a pile of rubbish, launching herself into the audience, or belting out a song with her astonishing voice, you are never allowed to settle. You are jolted awake.

Her talents are abundant. Not only is she a magnetic showgirl, but her writing is razor-sharp, intelligent. The show is a little bit funny, a little bit tragic, a little bit political — and wholly captivating. Her ad-libbing and audience interaction are astonishingly quick. It’s perhaps no surprise when you learn that Melissa Madden Gray — the woman behind Meow Meow — is a law graduate with first-class honours, holds a BA in Fine Art and German, and trained at WAAPA in musical theatre. The intellect behind the chaos is undeniable.

Directed by Black Swan Theatre Company’s Artistic Director, Kate Champion, the production feels like a perfect union. Champion’s background in dance beautifully complements Meow’s physicality and unpredictability. There is something powerful about seeing two women of this calibre collaborate so seamlessly — especially here in little old Perth. It feels special.

Projected across the stage in Danish are the words “ei blot til lyst” — not just for pleasure. This phrase becomes the beating heart of the show. Theatre, at its core, was never meant to be mere entertainment. It should challenge us, provoke us, educate us and unsettle us. While Meow Meow undeniably entertains, she refuses to stop there. The performance is a chaotic, sometimes overwhelming “brain dump” that moves at a million miles an hour — occasionally losing parts of the audience — but leaving everyone with something to sit with.

It feels like stepping back in time to what theatre used to be about: bold ideas, emotional risk, political undercurrents and catharsis. Meow herself describes it as a cathartic experience, and she’s right — not only for her, but for us.

At one point, I notice a young man sitting alone in front of me. He looks like a twenty-something backpacker — shorts, thongs, unassuming. Yet he knows every word. By the final song he is openly sobbing. And I must admit, I was moved too.
There are rare shows that can do this to an audience. This is one of them.

Meow Meow is a force — a little Tim Minchin, a little Eliza Minelli, crossed with your most chaotic, witty, tragic and deeply endearing friend.
She is simplistic yet impossibly complex. A complete mishmash of her mind — and perhaps of our own.

In an increasingly shallow and AI-saturated world, Red Shoes feels urgent. It reminds us that theatre is not just for pleasure.

It is what the world needs right now!

To book tickets to Meow Meow’s The Red Shoes, please visit https://blackswantheatre.com.au/season-2026/meow-meows-the-red-shoes.

Photographer: Brett Boardman

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