The final curtain comes down on the 2010 Dunedin Fringe
Festival this weekend.
But first, there will be an explosion of glitter and
inter-planetary pyrotechnics at Allen Hall tonight for one of
the most eclectic and electric shows at the Fringe this year,
Ian "Dr Glam" Chapman's The Glitter Show.
"It's going to be a visual extravaganza.
"I like to have lots of visuals, as well as music, so it will
include theatre, dance and fashion," Chapman said.
"The whole performance is like a glitzy cabaret.
"Performers will be coming out thick and fast, which will
keep the audience guessing.
"The show has been getting increasingly theatrical since Dr
Glam first appeared three years ago.
"I'm always striving to be weirder and more colourful than
before."
Chapman, who is a University of Otago music lecturer,
developed his sparkly alter-ego to demonstrate the power of
reinvention to his students.
"I wanted them to grasp the transformational potential of
developing a performance persona and the best way to get the
message across was to use myself as a living model," he said.
"There's also a deep ethos behind it all.
"It's about reinvention and gaining confidence by improving
yourself.
"I've got an enormous regard for the power of reinvention and
transformation," Chapman said.
"Dr Glam was my escapist fantasy figure when I was 13.
"He's been around for a long time.
"Glam rock was the perfect fantasy world to escape the bad
things in my childhood."
Chapman wrote a book last year about glam rock in New Zealand
in the 1970s, Glory Days: From Gumboots to Platforms.
"That Dr Glam fantasy figure has flowed over into real life.
"It's been enormously carthartic - both the message and
becoming the person you want to be."
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