One of the early stand-outs of this year’s Sydney Festival was WALK A MILE IN MY SHOES, an exhilarating concert performed by the Barefoot Divas at the inner-city Carriageworks venue.

The Barefoot Divas comprised six exceptional female soul singers and songwriters from Australia and the Pacific,- Helpmann Award winner Ursula Yovich (Serbia/Burarra), Black Arm Band favourite Emma Donovan (Gumbaynggirr), Whirimako Black (Maori), Maisey Rika (Maori) , Merenia (Maori/Roma) and Ngaiire (Papua New Guinea). As well as belting out some of their favourite tunes, each of the women shared stories from their diva lives.

What came across, more than anything else, was how talented, colourful, feisty and proud these six barefoot divas were. What a powerful celebration of sisterhood this was!

Of all the stories shared on the night, Ursula Yovich’s story was the most controversial, compelling and disturbing. Ursula walked right up to the front of the stage and told her story of disillusionment and heartbreak.

She spoke of her anger, of how she had been in the performing arts industry for close to twenty years, and, even now, she doesn’t feel that she is being treated as an equal, that she isn’t seriously considered for the big roles, because she is stereotyped and pigeon-holed because of her indigenous background. Her anger stems from the way that industry people can’t ‘look outside the square’.

WALK A MILE IN MY SHOES opened at Carriageworks on Sunday January 8 and only played a short season, running until Wednesday January 11, 2012.

(c) David Kary

13th January, 2012

Tags: Sydney Theatre Reviews- WALK A MILE IN MY SHOES- Carriageworks, Sydney Festival 2012, The Barefoot Divas, Ursula Yovich, Emma Donovan, Whirimako Black, Maisey Rika, Merenia, Ngaiire, Jaimie Williams.