Tim Trainor spends every waking moment finding out what's all the gay rage in Perth right now. Events, culture and random bits and pieces from Perth, Australia.
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Viewing posts tagged ‘northbridge’
August 11
Court incident not a stabbing
Many thanks to Ja for sending in this account of what happened at The Court on the weekend. Throwing glasses = no no.
1. Guy and girls start bumping into each other on front of podium
2. Guy spills drink on injured girls friend.
3. Injured girls friend falls back and steps down from podium okay.
4. Injured girl shoves guy hard off the podium and he lands down hard on concrete.
5. Guy grabs bottle/glass and chucks it at injured girls face.
6. Blood rapidly seeps from her face.
7. Guy goes off towards inside area.
8. Security and girl chase him.
9. Girl starts punching him and security seperate them.
10. Girl goes to bathroom.Ambulance took forever and a day as always to get there… probably an hour and a bit after the actual event took place.
August 9
Glass attack at The Court
First, my apologies for sparatic updates (life has been very busy recently), but I’ve been pulled back to the blog to talk about what happened at The Court last night.
The venue hasn’t been receiving any of my money in a while now, so I don’t have a first hand account to go on - if anyone else was there please shoot me an email. Apparently a girl was stabbed with a broken bottle at around midnight, and the scene was serious enough to pull in an army of police officers, firemen and security guards. Subsequently half of the venue was closed down to the public.
(Photos by LM)
An SMS from a friend:
It was as Bree called it; a crime scene. I spoke to her she seemed really worried about the bad publicity and the loss of money!
… yeah who cares if the girl survives anyway. Luckily for Bree though, the attack at The Court has been completely overshadowed in today’s news by a different glass attack just down the road at the Elephant and Wheelbarrow, which happened the night before.
In fact, this other stabbing is getting so much of the attention the State government is considering a glass ban for problem venues. More good luck as The Court gets no mention in the news article. Is Bree’s relationship with the police working to her advantage or has word simply not filtered through to the media yet?
Either way, it’s another reminder that all pub venues experience violence issues and The Court is no exception. Lets end this post with a Facebook status update that appeared on my feed this morning. Stay safe on the weekends everyone.
Stabbingat the Court, venue closed by police at around midnight…now we know why I dont go there, on another note, awesome night at Connies. Yay! Bedtime now
Witness comment via facebook:
some girls were fighting in the female toilets and one got hella bashed up. came staggering out at me bleeding all over the place. poor girl, her head was covered in blood, just dripping everywhere
July 2
Review: Dreamland Karaoke
I get an annoyed twinge in my cheekbone when gay bois spend endless weekends at The Court, and at the height of their 2am drunkennes, complain about the sorry state of Perth’s nightlife. To find a new way to enjoy yourself you often have to move beyond the bounds of your usual weekend ritual. What better way to utterly destroy your Court comfort zone than with a bit of public karaoke?
Dreamland is on the corner of William and Brisbane in Northbridge, and you can find it by the seizure inducing lights outside. To clarify, this ain’t no Singstar - this is the real deal; singing to a room of strangers with no backing vocals. There’s also two prerequisites: 1. a group of awesome and adventurous friends, and 2. plenty of alcohol. I went along with a pack from my day job, and had a voice straningly good time.
The cheese factor is all part of the enjoyment, right from the dodgy mafia looking guy who greets you, to the disco balls, balloons and lame karaoke videos. From what I remember, I belted out Natalie Imbruglia’s ‘Torn’ and the best karaoke song of all time; ‘A whole new world’ from Disney’s Aladdin. My performances were helped by three backing vocalists: a house white, a vodka and coke and a jagerbomb. Even if you’re not totally trashed, singing in front of a room of 50 odd people is quite an experience, and once you get over your initial nerves it’s a lot of fun.
Round up a group of friends and book a table ahead of time. For $30 you get the equivalent of 3 drinks, a Chinese buffet, and however many songs you can fill request tickets in for. Drinks thereon are relatively cheap. For the cost of a night’s entertainment plus food plus drink, it’s quite a bargain. Recommended!
June 8
Interview: Alaska
This week the Australian premiere of Alaska opens at the Blue Room theatre (Northbridge Cultural Quarter). It’s a contemporary play originating from England that explores racism in everyday society. In the lead up to the Alaska performance season, I had a Q and A session with one of the play’s cast members, Jeffrey Jay Fowler.
As an icebreaker, what can you tell us about Alaska?
Alaska is half comic, half dark. British racism and British humour at the same time. It focuses on a 24 year old university drop out working in a cinema. Though the play is largely touted as being about racism there’s a lot of other elements at play. Middle class guilt, the sexual attitudes of generation Y, religious righteousness and chain smoking all get their moment for analysis as well.
Your character is described as a seething racist. How do you prepare yourself to portray those traits in what is supposed to be a politically correct world?
‘Supposed to be’ is a pretty important part of that question. I don’t think the world is politically correct. Any weekend I go out I hear racist shouts across the streets of Perth. A lot of the people I meet in every day life will admit to being racist with just a little suggestion of the topic being ok. The play explores that too; the subtle racism ingrained in the way we view the world around us.
Preparing for this character isn’t too different from preparing for any other. I’ve played a nymphomaniac fairy god, a child stealing under taker, a 15 year old paraplegic surfer and the idea of thought itself. There’s always a huge gap between who I am and who I am playing. The director, Michelle Sowden, has a very different way of working character than any I have previously experienced. She has a very free way of creating, requiring a lot of actor impulse.
June 7
Review: Harry’s Bar
Harry’s Bar (web | fb | tw) found me on twitter before I found it. It’s located on Francis Street in Northbridge and has only been open for just over a month, but has already gained quite a solid following. I dropped by with my reviewing associate on a Friday night. The crowd is mainly mid 20s to mid 30s. Dress is smart casual, so everyone was looking a little extra flash.
The draw of this place is it’s atmosphere and imported drinks - mainly Tiger Beer. The venue owners seem to have a very strong liking of Tiger as they’ve named their outdoor area the ‘Tiger inspired laneway’ (pictured). Actually, the laneway was my favourite part as it gives you good break area from the noise and music inside.
On a Friday night at least, it’s a very relaxed affair. Francis is one of the quieter streets in Northbridge and most of the dickheads turn off onto Aberdeen (that’s where The Deen and Shed are, of course) so Harry’s Bar almost feels like an isolated oasis in the middle of town. That’s not to say it’s quiet though. Bar staff were friendly, although I found drink prices a little above average. The venue also closes at midnight, so Harry’s should be one of your early stops in a night out. They do food, but I haven’t had a chance to test this out yet.
Focus group: (wrap up from the attending reviewers)
Tim: Very relaxing and genuine venue, it’s everything that Tiger Lils tries but fails to be. Would highly recommend for drinks with friends.
David: City drinking in a great atmosphere (questionable Saturday band…) without the pretentious crowd.
May 20
Pride expands festival line up
Today Pride WA announced an exciting new event in their Homecoming Festival line up: the Pride WA Ball. The title is boring, but the event is not. It’s a dinner, dancing and awards night to recognise the contributions individuals and organisations have made to Perth’s GLBTIQ community (I hate that abbreviation so I won’t be using it again from hereon).
The ball will be on Saturday 22 August at the Novotel Langley and will include live entertainment and the crowning of a GLBTblah ‘King and Queen’. I hope they’re not drag related. Nominations for the various awards happen between June and August, so please bombard Pride WA with many, many emails telling them to nominate me for my contribution to Perth’s very small gay media scene, plus for all that humanitarian work I did in Rockingham - handing out food to homeless bogans, that sort of thing.
Pride WA will be releasing more details closer to the event, so look out for them on gayrage. Other important Pride dates for you to enter into your electronic devices:
- Pride launch: Friday 18 September
- Fairday: Sunday 27 September - (event will become a dance party after 6pm)
- Pride Parade and Homecoming Party: Saturday 31 October
May 2
spank me shameless in detention at connections
So, we’ve had women in uniform, and a gay fairy tale prom… it really is time to turn up the slut-o-meter and get kinky with our Perth dress up events. Introducing DETENTION at Connections on the 9th May.
Now stick with me while I explain all of these names: DETENTION is the first night in a new series of events called SHAMELESS run by Spank! Productions. Got that? If you received your Connections Communique this week you will know the DETENTION launch night is going with a kinky schoolyard theme:
We want to see some buffed up jocks, cute teachers pets, dominating headmistresses, nerds with attitude and plenty of sluts on the strutt
Not to blow my own trumpet but I fall into ALL of those categories. Dress up events go down well this time of year as the nights get cooler and you can wear more clothes but still be a slut about it. So come along, and come early - doors open at 8.00pm. And whatever you do, don’t wear that same white shirt and black tie you wore to gay prom… at least put a bondage collar or leather crotchless chaps on. It’s more fun that way - plus there’s a prize for best dressed.
If you’ve already discovered your hedonistic side and enjoy some good quirky fun, Spank! Productions also put on regular fetish and fantasy parties. These are gay-friendly nights where individual imagination and diversity is encouraged, and it’s not just about leather and BDSM. Check out the Spank! website or Facebook group for more.
May 2
Soho update
Well I think I’ve done enough posts about venues I’m not happy with - time for some I am happy with (which yeah, is rare). Last Tuesday night I went along to Soho Nights, a queer friendly night at Ellington Jazz club in Northbridge.
Great atmosphere for a weeknight glass of wine, and the music was very cosy. No, there wasn’t any scat jazz (without set beat / melody), so anyone who isn’t a complete jazz-head (me) won’t be alienated by the music. If you are looking for a swarve, sexy and different night out then head along to the next Soho Night on 12 May.
May 1
Why bar owners don’t work in public relations
I don’t actually spend every moment of my life whinging about The Court. I only do it every second day, or when I’m feeling cranky, or feeling bored. Physically it’s a great venue, and yes it has introduced some good new elements to Perth’s gay bar scene (mainly food related). Although I feel it still hasn’t reached full potential yet you could definitely go a lot worse on a Saturday night - Mustang Bar anyone?
What I frequently don’t agree with though is the venue management’s attitude towards its patrons. I’ve discussed this previously, but apparently we’re not even allowed to talk about it anymore: Bree Maddox (owner of The Court) recently went on a censorship spree and threatened the owners of two Court related Facebook groups, pushing the owners to take the groups down.
One of these groups was set up to discuss the security company employed by The Court, and included valid conversation on how patrons had been treated (according to the group a few incidents have occurred recently). When this Facebook group first started Bree Maddox even contributed, stating she would to look into the situation and enact changes as required. A few weeks later though she’s suddenly changed her mind and is demanding the group be deleted otherwise “further action” will be taken… huh?
The group owner told me:
She [Bree Maddox] asked me to take it down or it would be reported and removed anyway. So after a fairly intense discussion with her I swallowed my pride and removed it myself. They weren’t so much legal threats, but it was implied that further action would be taken if the group wasn’t deleted.
It doesn’t take a degree in Public Relations (which I do have, by the way) to know that if your customers are raising legitimate complaints, you don’t try to censor them. If you attempt to silence people they talk anyway. Word spreads and then some loudmouth puts it on his blog and then even more people know. Scaring your customers with implied threats of legal action or a banning from your venue is a big no no. A discussion group sharing complaints about a product or service is not defamation.
So my question to Bree Maddox is; why are we not allowed to talk about ways to improve The Court? Why are you threatening people who point out areas that need attention to make the venue better?
As a side note, can you also explain why you registered the domain name perthmardigras.com? I’m a tad confused… you didn’t want anything to do with the 2008 Pride Parade, but at the same time you registered a website for your own Perth Mardi Gras?… Just sayin!
Obviously this is quite a controversial topic for little ol’ Perth, and I would like to add a disclaimer that this post is by no means an attack on staff who work at The Court (I know you guys are a pretty tight knit bunch), or any specific security guard. Bree if you would like to respond - please do. I will gladly post your reply here.
Currently the Court related Facebook group I started ages ago has not received any requests to close down. Funny that.
April 28
A public holiday to remember who?
My lack of updates has been due to laziness and sickness (possibly the swine flu). ANZAC weekend is over and it’s a good time to think back at how we didn’t honour any fallen soldiers. If you went to a dawn service ignore this paragraph. For the 99% rest of you, and myself, ANZAC weekend means an extra day off work and events at the gay joints around Perth. It’s not that we’re disrespectful, we just have no connection to anyone lost in war. After all, it’s not our fault we’re generation Y, so lets make the most of it and get drunk eh?
Ironically one of the ANZAC weekend events I did attend… sort of… was ‘Gay Prom Fairytale‘ (as named on the flyer). Ironic because it’s the one event I didn’t give any attention on this blog (it didn’t need it) and I ’sort of’ attended because I didn’t actually enter the prom area. Instead my associate and I drank wine on the reject side of the fence and listened to the same music entertainment for free.
Part of my reasoning was I didn’t particularly feel like paying a cover charge for ‘same shit different outfit‘. To combine a few comments from friends the gay prom night was full of gay boys dressing like they were desperate to star in a Twilight movie, and hag girls wearing ball dresses who really shouldn’t be wearing ball dresses… on account of the fat roll spillage. Plus I don’t like cover bands. I’m a bitch. To The Court’s credit it was a really great theme idea, but charging $10-$20 entry is starting to push it. Think of the ANZAC soldiers!!!
Hightlights from Gay Prom: Not paying any money, and a really drunk friend telling Bree Maddox “you can’t go back there it’s for staff only!”.
Still on the topic of events, Soho nights at Ellington Jazz Club is on TONIGHT! (Tuesday). This event format sounds very interesting and I will be in attendance, so if you were offended by my comments above at least come along to abuse me (keeping in mind I won’t care :-D). The night isn’t just jazz music… come!
April 22
Upcoming events
We are not a one pub one club town. Here are some bits and pieces from the gay street scene:
Soho Nights is a new “intersection of art, music, variations of human experience and love”. It is hosted at the Ellington Jazz Club (Beaufort Street, very close to The Court) and features Jazz, Musical Theatre and Cabaret. It is a queer friendly night held every 2 weeks, with the next Soho Night on Tuesday 28 April. Please check it out - this is the type of event ‘new to the Perth scene’ that we need to support - believe it or not we do actually have culture in our city!
Anzac Weekend events: Women in uniform at Connections (Friday) and Woofclub 4 at Bar Open (Sunday)
From the rumour mill: Trick will be returning soon at a new location. I wish I could reveal where, but my lips are sealed. Think Beaufort Street. Trick will also become a monthly night.
Coming soon in late May / early June, “Voix de la Ville” an alternative performance night. If I have missed your queer friendly event, email me and I will happily plug you.
I leave with you the awesome song ‘Shoes’ from electronic music producer Tiga. It is atrociously addictive and has a fantastically psychedelic video clip. I dedicate this song to all the drag queens in Perth:
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