Real Women Showcase

Produced by Simone Flanagan in collaboration with Women with Disabilities Victoria.

As part of the Queen Victoria Centre's International Women's Day Festival Hub Events

Celebrating the unique and diverse art created by women with disabilities and showcasing their role as cultural innovators; a selection of short performances, spoken work, comedy and musical performances.

Featuring Stella Young, Eva Sifis, Jax Jacki Brown, Emma J Hawkins, Zhen Chew and more.

Eva Sifis is a disability arts project manager who hailed from Adelaide, SA before moving to Melbourne in 2011. She worked with Arts Access SA as well as managing her own events during Highbeam Festival and circus workshops over the past few years. Eva brings with her a personal journey through ‘disability’ as well as a long and varied history through the arts that has seen her perform and manage around Australia and also internationally.

Stella Young is a comedian, disability advocate and Editor of ABC’s Ramp Up website. Stella was a two-time state finalist in the Melbourne International Comedy Festival’s Raw Comedy competition; and has hosted eight seasons of Australia’s first disability culture program No Limits, aired on Channel 31 and community stations across the country.

Emma J Hawkin is a triple threat performer, a little outside of the box, who has a bag of tricks bigger than herself. Her alter ego The Divine Miss Em has been involved in many events and festivals and is well known for her sauciness and dancing prowess. Emma sees performing as a way of challenging herself and audiences alike, believing the Performing Arts should be accessible to all.

Jax Jacki Brown is a disability activist, writer, performer and trouble-maker. She runs disability and sexuality workshops and MCs deaf and disability performance nightQuippings in Melbourne.

Zhen Chew is internationally known for her Performance Drawing using charcoal and interactive animations; she creates artworks that explores the archival process of drawing as well as questioning perceptions of experience, time, place and self.

Anna Seymour completed a Bachelor of Creative Arts (Dance) at Deakin University in 2012 and has worked for various companies and festivals including Polyglot, La Mama, Strange Fruit, Dancehouse, Melbourne Fringe and Short and Sweet Dance Festival. Anna has been awarded a Professional Development grant from The Australia Council of the Arts in dance which includes a secondment with Lucy Guerin in 2014 and keeping Anna busy with dance training and performing opportunities – two of her favourite things!

Heidi Everett is a Melbourne based musician, artist and public speaker. She has a passion for creating unique mental health awareness, with projects that engage people by celebrating the culture of Living. Heidi has over two decades of professional artistic experience in some form or another. She also loves her second job, teaching songwriting and performance!

Venue is wheelchair accessible and the showcase will be Auslan interpreted and Audio Described.

When: 6:00pm (for a 6:30pm start) Monday 3 March

Where: The Victoria Room, Queen Victoria Womens Centre 210 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne

The performance will run for approximately 70 minutes

There will be a pop up bar onsite operating before and after the performance.

Please advise of any access requirements at time of booking.

If you are having trouble booking, would like more information or would like to volunteer on the night, please contact: simoneflanagan@gmail.com