Trevor is All Diamonds and Steel
Coral Drouyn talks to Trevor Ashley about the perils of NOT wearing heels.
When the Arts Centre on the Gold Coast announced last year that renowned (and award winning) performer Trevor Ashley would be bringing his Shirley Bassey tribute – complete with 24 piece orchestra – Diamonds are for Trevor to the main theatre, there was great excitement. After all, though Trevor is undisputed Empress of Mardi Gras, a respected stage director and producer, actor, writer of his own shows (often with great mate Rhonda Burchmore) and frequent award nominee, his largest audience must surely be for his fabulous take offs of two iconic stars, Liza Minnelli and Shirley Bassey. Trevor’s great voice and impressive range do justice to both stars, but it’s the wickedly funny gestures and body language that are so deliciously entertaining. So when the Gold Coast show was cancelled, it certainly wasn’t for lack of interest, it was because Trevor, quite literally, needed a hand.
Ashley, who is a stalwart supporter of many causes, was the Director for the 20th and very last Show Biz Fund-raiser Hats Off at the Lyric Theatre, a phenomenon since 1997. The all-star guest list literally read like a directory of every important Musical Theatre and Cabaret performer in Australia.
“It was truly amazing,” Trevor says. “Everyone was so generous and wanted to be part of it. I was afraid the concert would last for 12 hours. But we were on such a high at the end that some of us went for drinks afterwards. And there I was, dressed as a bloke, going down a flight of stars and CRASH…I went down like a ton of….well, a ton of very round Drag Queen.”
Trevor is grateful for his generous padding or the fall could have meant a broken hip or worse. But his hands are quite fine-boned.
“I knew I was in trouble as soon as I tried to move it. And the silly thing is that I probably wouldn’t have fallen if I had been in heels. When you walk in stilettos your weight is distributed differently and you’re more careful about where you put your feet. Being a bloke was my undoing.”
It turned out that Trevor had smashed several bones in the hand and required an operation. The hand is now held together by 4 steel screws.
“That’s going to play havoc at airports,” he jokes. Trevor had to cancel any concerts as Bassey. “She’s perhaps the one performer in the world whose hands are as important as her voice. Doing a one-handed Bassey makes as much sense as doing a one-legged Cyd Charisse,” Trevor explains.
Nevertheless Ashley, known as the busiest man in ShowBusiness, went ahead with his planned Adult Panto, The Bodybag, in which he lampooned both Whitney H and Paulini. But the hand made its presence felt at every performance.
“You can cope with the pain,” Trevor says, “but it is weird to have something alien, not human, in your hand.”
I’m not sure if he’s serious or if that’s a subtle risqué joke.
“Strangely,” he adds, “It’s not a problem as soon as Dame Shirley takes over…the hand knows exactly what’s expected. “
And Dame Shirley will take over again this Friday at Arts Centre Gold Coast. It will be your last chance to see TWO iconic stars (Trevor and Shirley) on the same stage this year.
“I’ve loved being Shirley and the show has changed a great deal in the 3 years since she and I formed our alliance. Even though we’ve never met, I feel as if we know each other now,” Trevor says.
Right now he isn’t sure what is next.
“I’d love to do an all-male Sweeney Todd. I mean, for real, not a send up. Sondheim is Sacred. Of course, I would play Mrs Lovett, with perhaps a touch of Angela Lansbury,” Trevor tells me in all seriousness.
Whatever Ashley chooses to do, you can bet it will be done with style and panache. And Dame Shirley would love that.
Diamonds Are for Trevor is at the Arts Centre Gold Coast on Friday Feb 2nd, 2018.
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