Millicent Sarre on her new show: 'I love that intimacy and direct relationship with the audience'
It’s her seventh year at Adelaide Fringe and Millicent Sarre is aiming to put some pep in your step with her latest show. Lisa Woolford chats to her about the big issues: professional feminism, burnout and what to have for dinner
Hi Millicent, can you give me the elevator pitch for your show? It’s a comedy about burnout because it’s something that I struggle with frequently and I believe a lot of us are grappling with. I think that there are society-wide, systemic issues to blame. I think it’s a feminist issue. I think it’s a social justice issue. I think it is an issue of progress and change and I want to dissect that and empower my audience to believe that we do have the power to better take care of ourselves and the world around us.
Was there a particular moment that inspired the show? I’ve been wrestling with it for 18 months. I find when I'm going to write a new solo piece, there is something in the ether that's been tugging at the edge of my brain, something that's bothering me. I need to work through it, through my music.
Are you really the antidote to the exhaustion of having to decide what to have for dinner, as your blurb claims? Every. Single. Night? I can claim to do a lot of things, Lisa, but unfortunately, helping people decide what to have for dinner is not one of those things. That one, I think, is beyond me.
Fair enough. How about some light relief from the relentlessness of the daily grind? That is my aim. If people walk away feeling a little bit lighter, like they have a little bit more autonomy to make change, like there's a bit more pep in their step, then I will have done my job.
You call yourself a professional feminist: please explain? It emerged from a gag in my show, Millicent Sarre Is Opinionated. It was my spiel, it was funny and it stuck. But when you work in the arts, you’re a multi-hyphenate with so many strings to your bow; you can't really say ‘I'm a singer, a songwriter, cabaret artist’. It's just easier to put it under one title. So professional feminist it is.
You won Best Cabaret at the 2023 Adelaide Fringe. Is there a certain pressure that comes with that? There is and I have run myself into the ground a little bit with this pressure of ‘hey, you have a proven track record that the stuff you create has been really well received. You better live up to that.’ Everything that I create, I want it to be better than the last thing. I definitely put a lot of pressure on myself early in the writing process, to the point it was detrimental and I had to actively take that pressure off.
What can audiences expect? It’s a new original score and I'm expanding the musical output of the show. I was the very grateful recipient of an Adelaide Fringe Foundation grant which allowed me to invest in some equipment that is going to make the musical side of things very speccy.
You’re going to go Ed Sheeran and loop? I am literally going Ed Sheeran. I have a beautiful loop station and that means that with just one voice, I can make these lovely, lush vocal harmonies and arrangements. It'll be me on the keys, and then my beautiful partner Cameron is going to play guitar. It will be a sonic treat.
There's often audience interaction in your shows. Yes, my audience will be singing, consensually. They'll have some little songs written about them. And I love that intimacy and direct relationship with the audience; because the audience is different every night, the show is different every night.
What do you hope they leave with? That they want to take better care of themselves, so that they can take better care of the people around them and the world around them, and that taking care of themselves doesn't have to be perfect or picturesque. Even small acts for yourself and other people are meaningful and matter.
Like buying tickets to the Fringe? Exactly. Buy early and buy lots. But seriously, I encourage audiences to expand their Fringe viewership. Of course, you can go and see the names that you know and love but also taking a chance on new and emerging acts is always worthwhile. It gives you the opportunity to say ‘I saw them before they were famous’. I'm mentoring three young, fantastic emerging artists: Phoebs, You’re A Lesbian by Phoebe Rodger, Tayla In Oz by Tayla Alexander and Maybelline Is In Her Slut Era with Maybelline San Juan. Fresh ideas are awesome and people really should go see them.
Can you believe that you are now mentoring people? It is a little bit strange. It feels very full circley, and the circle didn't take very long to close up.
Millicent Sarre is Too Tired to Smash (Patriarchy), Gluttony Rymill Park, 20–22, 24–28 February, 1 March 8.40pm; Gluttony At Tandanya, 15 March, 5pm; main picture: Kieran Humphreys.