Musician and performer Tomi Gray is pulling back the curtain on life on the road with the travelling Infamous circus, appearing now on the Sunshine Coast.
Until September 6, Infamous has set up its big top on Dalton Drive, Maroochydore, bringing circus, comedy, cabaret and live entertainment to the region.
For Tomi, the touring lifestyle means travelling with the same cast and crew, with time eventually measured not in days, but in destinations.
“It’s an odd existence,” he says.
“You move into a town, build this little temporary world, fill it with noise and people for a few weeks, then pack the whole thing up and disappear,” he says.
After a year-and-a-half on the road, Tomi says the close-knit nature of the touring community has become a defining part of the experience.
“You get to know people very quickly when there’s nowhere really to disappear to,” he says.
“You see each other at your best, your worst and in all the bits in between.
“There’s definitely the occasional moment where everyone needs to get away from tent-related activity, but mostly you develop this strange shorthand with each other.
“After a few months on the road, they stop feeling like people you work with and start feeling more like a dysfunctional little village.”
The Maroochydore season will feature Infamous the Show, family-friendly Super Cirque, Unzipped male revue and stand-up comedy events.
Tomi will also present his own show, Trip, for one day only inside the big top on September 5.
Combining original music, comedy, storytelling and surreal theatre, Trip debuted at this year’s Adelaide Fringe, where it received a five-star review.
Tomi says the show grew from a desire to bring together ideas and creative influences that did not fit neatly into one genre.
“Eventually, it stopped making sense to separate any of it,” he says.
“Life doesn’t arrive in tidy genres.
“So, I figured the show probably shouldn’t either.”
After its Adelaide Fringe success, Tomi says bringing Trip to the Sunshine Coast is an opportunity to continue developing the performance.
“Bringing it to the Sunshine Coast feels exciting because the show keeps changing every time I perform it. It’s still the same beast, but it’s grown teeth in a few new places,” he says.
Infamous: Until September 6, Dalton Drive, Maroochydore.
Tomi Gray’s Trip: Saturday, September 5, 4pm. Tickets are $25.
Visit the website at infamous.net.au for more information.
