An Interview With The Rad Chicks Behind Girl Gang Cabarets
If you’ve never heard of Girl Gang Cabarets, you’ve been missing out. Girl Gang Cabarets is an unboxed variety show at The Painted Lady. Featuring Canadian artists from various disciplines, Girl Gang Cabarets provides a space in Toronto to celebrate feminism and new art.
Their last show, in October, included performances by local musicians Dina Thorpe, Sayana, and Lauren Mayer, comedian Tamara Shevon, and a pop up shop by the super cool Ghoul’s Night In. Following acts, there is an open stage portion where audience members can go up and share. We were lucky enough to attend this Halloween themed show and talk to the rad chicks behind Girl Gang Cabarets all about it. And if you missed this show, you’re in luck! Girl Gang Cabarets is hosting their next show tomorrow!
Steph
Hi there! Tell us about the women behind Girl Gang Cabarets and what you do.
We are Chelsea Preston and Steph Crothers. We met doing a show together just over a year ago. We both like dancing, music, theatre, Riverdale, and trying new things.
Steph: I am an actor. I graduated from both Humber College Theatre Program in Toronto and Ecole Philippe Gaulier (a clown school) in Paris France. I love science fiction and the world of the fantastical. I also like the outdoors and surfing.
Chelsea: I am a professional musical theatre performer originally from Vancouver Island! I am secretly a grandma, I love tea, music, vintage, and travelling. I grew up dancing from the age of 3, my parents said I could dance before I could walk. I am also a singer/songwriter. I write tunes on my tenor uke and guitar and try to make my uke songs sound as un-uke as possible.
What inspired the idea to start a monthly cabaret show?
Chelsea: As an emerging singer/songwriter I wanted a place to put my art. I have so many talented artist friends and we would talk about having these projects and nowhere to put them. So I started Girl Gang Cabarets as a place to put my friends art and build connections and friendships… to build on a community of badass artists.
Steph: Initially Chels was going to do the show at a friends house and I was like “Dude, I’ve got these friends and they own an amazing venue” (The Painted Lady). I had also been in talks with The Painted Lady about doing my own cabaret style show. I wanted something that was a bit strange and out of the ordinary. I wanted to book acts that you wouldn’t see anywhere else. It was serendipitous.
Why is it important to you to facilitate a space where people can celebrate both feminism and new art?
Chelsea: Because there is never going to be enough space!
Steph: Ditto! Also there is so much out there. There are so many badass people doing amazing things all on their own without a platform. I mean we have been those people and we wanted to be able to do our own thing without waiting for someone to say yes or no!
How do you find and choose your performers? What makes a girl gang member?
We often call ourselves an unboxed and or feminist variety show. For us GGC is about equality and levelling the playing field. We want to feature artists who want to hold up inclusivity and equality. We work hard to find artists who are outside the box. We search for acts that are unique and inspiring. We want hold up artists who don't care about “normal”, call out inequality, and are not concerned with being comfortable. Artists who are non-conforming, make brave choices, and are just generally doing their thang because that is the only way they know how to be. This is important to us because not only do we feel like there will never be enough space for people like this, but we also are really into the idea of community and people sharing with people. That is why we have an open stage after the featured artists... because it is important to not only challenge and inspire; but also foster, listen, and provide space for those who are trying to break free.
For us the word Girl in Girl Gang is not about gender or needing to conform to gender binaries… it’s a slang term of endearment… like “oh hey Giiiirl Hey!” We mostly find people through word of mouth, checking out new events, and social media.
When putting this Halloween show together what were you looking for?
When putting a show together we search for contrasting, yet complimentary artists. Our formula is usually, music, comedy, poetry, and something physical like burlesque or clown. We also have a pop up shop featuring local businesses.
For the Halloween show we were looking for all of those things, but edgy… with a hint of spookiness. We were really lucky to get Ghouls Night in for our pop up shop that night.
One of the singers at your last show, Sayana, commented on the beauty of social media and its role in the discovery and sharing of art. What part do these online communities have in supporting Girl Gang Cabarets?
Steph: Chelsea is really the social media wizard. I personally feel like social media is like a hormone monster from the show Big Mouth something terrifying that I am not totally in control of, but at other moments its is so so beautiful.
Chelsea: For us social media, more than promoting ourselves, is a way to find new artists outside of our circles and connect with them directly. Steph and I use it as a way to share artists that we are excited about. I find an artist on social and can immediately send Steph a video of them. It’s like a free accessible roster of talent that we can tap into.How have Girl Gang Cabarets grown since your first show?
Steph: The first show was Chelsea having an exciting idea. It featured friends/acquaintances and mostly music. The only thing I did for that first show was help with the venue, and create some of the graphic design.
Chelsea: The first show was me figuring out a lot of things… it was the first time I had ever produced anything. It was such a great jumping off point. Steph and I really started to jive and pass ideas back and forth. We started going to comedy and burlesque shows and meeting new people. And from there we created new friends and connections.
Steph: Yes, right now it has been almost a year and I think GGC is starting to be its own entity.Chelsea: Its been really cool for me, because I have been away for a couple of months doing shows outside of Toronto. It’s like passing this big idea back and forth. It’s been really cool to watch Steph grow the idea of hosting as a character… it makes it feel like a true variety show.
So far Girl Gang has worked with 40 different artists across many different mediums. We constantly try and find new ways to showcase different artists; from our pop up shops, to the amazing artists who draw our posters. We are a show that would not be possible without the amazing variety of humans that we have gathered in our gang.And finally, what do you hope for in the future for Girl Gang Cabarets?
We hope we can make this sustainable. Ideally we would like to get into festivals… and then maybe have our own festival! In the new year we are hoping to apply for some grants. We would love to try and bring GGC to different cities in Canada! We have also been silk screening our own t-shirts and tote bags, so continuing to developing our silk screening skills.
We hope to see you at the next show - Dec 9th, 5pm at The Painted Lady!
Don’t miss Girl Gang Cabarets’ Holiday Show tomorrow and make sure to follow them on Instagram @girlgangcabarets!