teenage diary

THIRROUL SINGER-SONGWRITER KAY PROUDLOVE HAS TURNED HER HAND TO MUSICAL THEATRE IN THE UPCOMING PRODUCTION,

DEAR DIARY

Words Elana Stone @elanastoneworld Indie-folk singer/songwriter Kay Proudlove has been a constant in the Wollongong music scene for 15 years, bringing her brand of intimate live performance style to venues up and down the coast. You may have been privileged to witness her soul-bearing voice at venues like La La La’s, Headlands Hotel, Kiama Leagues, or at the Illawarra Folk Festival or more recently the Thirroul Music Festival. With a wealth of experience on stage, Kay’s vulnerable story-telling through song can be relatable, heartbreaking and joy-filled all at once. The accomplished musician is now expanding her repertoire, working with Merringong Theatre to release a new stage show this May, in which Kay’s teenage diaries will be front of stage. After rediscovering her journals when moving house, Kay knew she had found some creative gems. Heartbreaking, hilarious and sometimes cringe-worthy, her diary entries were put to music and crafted into Dear Diary – a show of storytelling, music and self-discovery.

“They were so embarrassing at the time but they are hilarious to me now”

We spoke to Kay about growing up in the Illawarra and how it feels to share her diary with the world… and her parents.

Where did you grow up? Thirroul. I went to Thirroul Primary School, with a short stint in England inYear 2 and 3. I got teased for having an Australian accent, and then back to Australia where I got teased for having a Northern English accent!

When did you start writing songs? I wrote my first song at 14 – it was called Colourful and it was a love song. I had big feelings and I didn’t know what to do with them.

I love the idea of presenting your teenage diary entries to the world. What kinds of juicy revelations can we expect to hear? You might hear a bit about a celebrity crush that I had – there were definitely fan fictions involved. One of them was Daniel Radcliffe. He’s not in the show, although I’m trying to get him a small part [laughs].

What period of your life do these diary entries represent? The diary starts inYear 7 (2000), age 13 to age 16 (2003) – from the time of Spice Girls to the time my friends started getting their driver’s licences. Was anything too juicy or embarrassing that you had to leave it out? Not really. If anything, it brought back other embarrassing memories from that time and those also ended up in the show. They were so embarrassing at the time but they are hilarious to me now. I had to separate myself from this character that I was writing about. [In the show] ‘Kay’ has to pack up her old room and that’s where it comes from –the diaries appear. The songs are all diary entries.

Is there anything in the show that your parents would be shocked by? No, I don’t think so. I’m pretty open with them now.There’s probably a few things that they may have suspected that will be confirmed!

Do you look back on your teenage self fondly? I do… sometimes.There’s a big theme of body image running through the play. I feel a lot of fondness but also it makes me sad to think of myself back then and how I was feeling about myself at the time. It’s super hard for teenage girls and it doesn’t get better for a long time for some people. It’s a constant reminder of how far you’ve come from when you hated your body.

What would you say to your teenage self? What would I say to baby Kay? I would say – just relax a bit. Chill out! And don’t be afraid to make your art. I would say,‘Hold on to that drive you have to make art and to be really truthful with your music.’

A lot of your songs seem to be about not being a very convincing adult… I would say that I am a ‘stealth’ adult, in that, I definitely am one: I have two dogs and a mortgage and a fiancé and I can pay my bills. But I still don’t believe that I am a grown-up. I’d say I’m a grownup in disguise – from myself. ¡