Detailed Content and
Sensory Guide
This guide contains spoilers.
If you would prefer a more general overview of the themes and sensory elements of the show, you can navigate back here.
Why do you have this guide?
By its very nature, sideshow has an inherent element of risk - dangerous stunts are what makes witnessing a sideshow act such a unique and exhilarating experience! Le Freak presents sideshow acts created by multiply-marginalised artists, using sideshow as a format to explore themes of empowerment, exploitation, tokenisation, dehumanisation, and the complexities of identity within the neoliberal hellscape of late-stage capitalism.
By the nature of the themes engaged, and of the very genre of sideshow itself, we recognise that Le Freak contains content that audience members may find confronting, sensorially intense, or triggering. Our aim is for our audiences to feel as well-prepared as possible if they have concerns about what to expect from the show, both in terms of thematic and sensory content.
How do I use it?
The guide below allows you to know when specific thematic and sensory elements are present, broken down scene by scene. If you are ok with spoilers and would prefer to be able to avoid exposure to certain content, or be specifically prepared for when it will arise, this may be the best option. If you would prefer a more general guide, you can navigate back to a thematic overview here.
1 - Opening
00:00-
Themes: Sudden cuts between bad-ass artists holding weapons, disco, Centrelink
Dangerous stunts: N/A
Content Description
The cast pose dramatically in front of images of flame and explosions, to a recorded movie-trailer style introduction. They hold weapons including whips, swords, and chains. The trailer describes them facing off with various dangerous and dramatic themes in a camp, Scooby Doo gang-style drama. They then break out into dance. The dance is interrupted by a message from MyGov.
Sensory notes
Suspenseful music
Scream (both recorded and live)
Whip crack
2 - ThunderPuss
00:00 - 00:00
Themes: Sexual movements, danger
Dangerous stunts: Sword swallowing
Content Description
Elle Diablo dances and swallows swords.
Sensory notes
Music: Thundercats theme music, Good Puss by Cobrah.
The music is up-tempo pop.
3 - Centrelink #1
00:00 - 00:00
Themes: frustration and waiting
Dangerous stunts: N/A
Content Description
Themme Fatale is stuck on hold to Centrelink.
Sensory notes
Centrelink hold music
4 - Bubbles Whips
00:00 - 00:00
Themes: risk, victory
Dangerous stunts: targeted whip cracking
Content Description
Bella performs various whip tricks, including cracking a whip at targets held by the ferret puppet, Bubbles.
Sensory notes
Loud whip crack x 4
Music: Rocky Theme
5 - Corporate Interruption
Timecode
Themes: homophobic and racist micro-aggressions, tokenisation
Dangerous stunts: N/A
Content Description
The whips act is interrupted by two horrible women from corporate, shown on the screen over zoom. The women give “notes” on the act.
Sensory notes
Multiple voices speaking at once (only in short bursts)
6 - Centrelink #2
Timecode
Themes: boredom, waiting, alcohol, gross body stuff
Dangerous stunts: Themme Fatale pours alcohol through their nose
Content Description
Themme Fatale is still on hold to Centrelink. They have been drinking, and proceed to pour a shot through their nostril and into a cup. They drink it.
Sensory notes
Drinking, body fluids (face)
Music: Centrelink hold music
7 - Hoops - Corporate Interruption
Timecode
Themes: concern, ableism, tokenisation, cigarette mention
Dangerous stunts: N/A
Content Description
Sarah and bubbles set up perform a hoop act but Bubbles is missing. Corporate appear to see what the problem is, and give more notes, telling Sarah to perform Bubbles the ferret’s part.
Sensory notes
Multiple voices speaking at once (recorded and live)
8 - Hoops
Timecode
Themes: fun, defiance
Danger/stunts: Hoops
Content Description
Sarah Performs a hula hoop act with LED hoops.
Sensory notes
LED hoops are spun around while lit up, with low light elsewhere on stage.
Music: Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
9 - Centrelink SMASH
Timecode
Themes: waiting, dissociation, humour, the evil of bureaucracy
Danger/stunts: flip, bed of nails, brick smash
Content Description
Themme Fatale is STILL on hold to Centrelink, as told by the metaphor of contemporary dance. The cast join them as Centrelink employees, things get even more surreal. After dancing together, Themme Fatale is “forced” onto a bed of nails and has a brick smashed on them using a large mallet.
Sensory notes
The act builds in intensity throughout, from low, to quite high intensity
Yelling (encouraging)
Flashing Lights (no strobe)
Brick being broken
High contrast concentric lines on AV screen
Music: Remixed and rock cover versions of the Centrelink hold music
10 - AV: Bubbles Big Day Out
Timecode
Themes: old-time movie, suspense, violent struggle, kidnapping of ferret
Danger/stunts: N/A
Content Description
Video showing Bubbles the ferret stepping out for a cigarette where he is kidnapped by the women from corporate.
Sensory notes
POV camera
Dramatic camera movement
12 - Straight Jacket Escape
Timecode
Themes: the evils of bureaucracy, institutionalisation, escape, suspense, struggle, Centrelink
Danger/stunts: straight jacket escape
Content Description
Sarah is led onstage by Centrelink employees, and pushed around by them. She is chained into, then escapes out of an old-style straight jacket.
Sensory notes
Music building in intensity
Physical struggle
13 - Inquisitive Strippers
Timecode
Themes: sexy dancing, dehumanisation of sex workers, client frustrations, exhaustion, dissociation
Danger/stunts: partner acro, audience participation
Content Description
Themme Fatale and Elle Diablo appear onstage as strippers. They walk out into the audience and talk to audience members in a parody of things people commonly ask strippers. An audience member is invited up for a lap dance, and it becomes clear our strippers have been on the clock for hours and are very tired. A humorous dissociation sequence ensues during the lap dance, where our dancers and the rest of the cast “sail away” to Enya.
Sensory notes
Audience participation
Music: Pour Some Sugar on me, Orronico Flow
14 - AV Bubbles Last Will
Timecode
Themes: death, reading of will
Danger/stunts: N/A
Content Description
Bella reads Bubbles’ last will and hands out items left to audience members.
Sensory notes
High-pitched voice (Bubbles)
Light audience participation
1 5 - Swamp Thing
Timecode
Themes: unsettling, haunting, nudity, violence against sex workers
Danger/stunts: pole dance
Content Description
Elle Diablo performs as the Swamp Thing - the spirit of murdered sex workers. She rises from the swamp to dance, then returns back from where she came.
Sensory notes
Loud unsettling audio including static, overlapping sounds, whispering, vocal growls
Intense visual projections including glitching and static
Flashing light but no strobe
Mention of violence and murder
1 6 - Drag Story Time
Timecode
Themes: transphobia, early childhood literacy, drag story hour, conservative nonsense, drag,
Danger/stunts: glass walking, dancing and rolling on broken glass
Content Description
Themme Fatale performs their “most dangerous act”, which turns out to be reading a book to children. Elle Diablo intervenes, so Themme performs a lip-sync and glass-walking stunts instead.
Sensory notes
Up-beat pop music - a remix of Eartha Kitt “I Want to be Evil”
Sound of broken glass crunching
1 7 - GOAT
Timecode
Themes: body horror, suspense,
Danger/stunts:
Content Description
Bella appears
Sensory notes
Screaming
Long streamers pulled from within body (mouth and crotch)
1 8 - Corporate Interruption
Timecode
Themes: queerphobia, transphobia
Danger/stunts: N/A
Content Description
Corporate have notes on Bella’s act. When pushed on what their real issue is, they menacingly say “we’ll show you” and the call cuts out
Sensory notes
Zoom call
1 9 - Money
Timecode
Themes: money, greed
Danger/stunts: human stapling
Content Description:
Corporate show up to show what they actually care about. It’s money. They dance, strip, and staple money to each other.
Sensory notes
Simulated thunder and lightning
Music - Money (That’s What I want)
20 - Capitalism Monologue/Death Scene
Timecode
Themes: death, greed, murder, body horror, capitalism
Danger/stunts: N/A
Content Description
Bella and Sarah walk in on corporate as they are playing with all their money and notice that their handbags are made from ferret fur. Corporate drop the niceties and reveal their true intentions. Bubbles appears and interrupts by chestbursting out of Becca and murders her. The gang push Caitlyn into Bubbles so that she is murdered too. Corporate dies. The gang celebrate.
Sensory notes
Screaming, simulated blood, death
Act 5: Centrelink 2
00:00-2:00
It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
Centrelink hold music
Themes: frustration and waiting
Simulated alcohol consumption - Themme Fatale has obviously been waiting for a long time and drinks a big margarita that they’ve made