FLAZEDA ALTERNATE ARTS HUB

A bit grunge, a bit emo, but absolutely punk, this homegrown pissed off feminist three-piece boast huge tunes that’ll get stuck in your head. And with their support of Sydney grunge-witches BOYSCLUB coming up at The Basement on 12 March, we thought it high time to get fly with Box Dye.

Artist name and origins: Box Dye - We frequently dye our own hair. It’s cheap and effective for temporarily curbing mental breakdowns (or succumbing to them).

Group members: Melissa Sullivan - Guitar and vocals

Alice Worley - Vocals and drums Myles Wrigley - Bass and backing vocals

Describe your sound: Take ‘90s Riot Grrrl, 2000s emo, a pinch of grunge, and a sprinkle of pop and stick it in a blender from Kmart that doesn’t handle ice very well.

Who/What are your influences, musical or otherwise?

Positive influences include Green Day, No Doubt, Garbage, and all the bad bitches that we have in our lives.

Negative influences include inequality, ignorance, the patriarchy, and anything that makes us more than a bit pissed off.

What are some of the most memorable experiences you’ve had as a band? Lugging our shit up a giant hill for an outdoor show, hoping it would be worth giving our mate an asthma attack, and it ended up being our favourite gig date.

Tell us about one of your proudest moments? Hearing positive feedback from people that see us overwhelms us with proud moments. We’re also particularly proud of how much we achieved as a new band in 2020. Despite COVID, we never slowed down. What are your plans for the future? Our goal for 2021 is to release some new tunes and take them on an interstate tour!

What makes you laugh? Myles’s ass (bodacious af).

What pisses you off? Mel’s ass (stanky).

Anything else you’d like to add? Huge thank you to all the fans and bands that have supported us in the last year. We couldn’t be more appreciative.

You can check out Box Dye’s cracking track Julia by heading to https://www.triplejunearthed.com/artist/box-dye

BMA Bossman ALLAN SKO catches up with multi-award-winning CBR Burlesque performer/ producer, RACHEL REID (aka JAZIDA) to talk about the newly opened Social Enterprise space for the Belconnen community.

Rachel Reid (who struts the performance stage as the sultry Jazida) has been working in GRIST (the Social Enterprise Accelerator program) with Mill House Ventures to unpack her mission: expand the Jazida Produtions events outfit to build a viable and sustainable enterprise. And now, after much toil, Reid is bringing alternative arts to the community in a big way, through the launch of new community hub, the wonderfully named Flazéda. Reid is extremely well positioned for such a venture, recently receiving enough accoloades to make any proverbial trophy shelf groan. Jazida Productions won the Outstanding Performing Arts gong in the Canberra Local Business Awards; whilst Reid herself placed #46 in the most influential people in the burlesque industry (globally!), and was nominated for ACT Woman of the Year.

So what does such a mighty burlesque brain have bubblin’ for tha ‘Berra? “We run dance classes, performance workshops, and produce vibrant fun variety nights and burlesque shows that showcase all kinds of people in fabulous celebrations of body positivity and diversity,” explains Reid. “The new space is a versatile canvas ready for artists to use in whatever way they see fit! There are two studio rooms that can be used independently or could be used as a green room and performance space. We have a bar, sprung flooring, theatre blocks, audience chairs, a PA and lighting system, a rigging point, a projector, mirrors, sequin curtains… Basically, we’re ready for good time!” Sounds like my old Uni apartment with a budget. Jazida Productions supports the professional development of alternate performing artists. Not just through classes and workshops available to the general public, but also through scholarship programs and paid performance opportunities to address barriers to representation for artists, particularly those who are gender diverse, culturally and linguistically diverse, living with disability and/or Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander.

The focus is on the fringe artforms outside of the mainstream; burlesque, drag, comedy, belly dance, and circus. There are myriad classes on offer, teaching hula hooping, vintage hair styling, Bellydance, Bollywood and, of course, burlesque. It also serves as a much needed venue, events coming up including the packed Belco Speakeasy Comedy night on 20 March and Red Light Confidential on 16 April. It’s a heck of a time for such a feat. The pandemic required a radical shift in the way Reid and the Jazida Productions team delivers their services, with the space not only hosting in-person classes but also providing an in-house live streaming service. It was the perfect time to develop a different type of business that puts purpose and impact first as Rachel rebuilt her venture.

Photo credits: Staff on the red couch (middle left), hanging from the hoop (top right), launch classes (top left and top right) by Purvore Photography; Flazéda signage (top left) and crowd at opening night (bottom left) by MeThinks Photography. The rest provided by Rachel Reid (on the right on the hoop!)

Social Enterprise is the perfect fit for the type of business Rachel is creating, as it captures both the discipline of profitable businesses and the need for measurable impact to address disadvantage. Says Irene Lemon, Program Manager of the Mill House Social Enterprise Accelerator: “Rachel’s work with Jazida Productions, especially in the successes she has earned over five years of delivering incredible performances and classes, is the perfect foundation for a launch in social entrepreneurship. We have asked a lot of Rachel throughout the Mill House program, and she has risen to very high expectations to launch her new space, Flazéda.” Understandably, Reid is extremely excited about the new space: “Flazéda is a space where we can run more classes, more workshops, link artists up with mentors, and provide a performance space where new and established artists can perform and audiences can enjoy those performances in a safe and supportive environment. If you are looking for a space to play then get in contact! So far we’ve had successful parties, performances, video and photo shoots, workshops and classes, guided meditation sessions, catered events, and soon we’ll have stand-up comedy, life drawing and more. “I can’t wait to find out how you’d like to use the space too.” Flazéda is Canberra’s newest alternate performing arts hub at Unit 4, 68 Emu Bank in Belconnen. For more information go to flazedahub.com or visit instagram.com/flazeda.hub