the brisbane backyard...
by michelle bull

As the divas venture into Brisbane backyards for upcoming Brisbane festival on Sept 4th, I cant help but reflect on my own backyard adventures, and there have been a few!
My first 3 months in Brisbane were spent crammed into a small apartment in Toowong where I slept on the couch, and the only backyard to speak of was a shared brown strip of grass that contained a rusty hills-hoist, the distinct odour of possums, and was frequented by articles of clothing and underwear that had drifted down from the neighbours balconies above, a kind of washing wasteland if you will. The next, was made entirely of pebbles, all I remember was the small spiders that would nestle between the stones, ready for my unsuspecting toes should I venture outside!

The backyards that followed were a little more friendly, little sanctuaries of suburban wilderness that saw many afternoon coffees, and evening wines, the occasional owl or visiting possum and my favourite, the arachnophobia gardener.  But my biggest backyard adventure by far has to be an incident involving fresh washing, and some nature inspired choreography. As us divas are always on the go, this stylish, and risk-taking diva decided to chance a run to the washing line in her undergarments to grab a freshly laundered dress needed for the days performance. Hastily she threw on the dress, and began to collect the rest of the washing, admiring her impeccable sense of timing as she waved to the neighbours strolling onto the deck next door for their morning coffee. But then as she was paring up the last pair of socks, a light tickle crept across her chest and as she looked down the little brown furry leg of a huntsman spider scurried into the fabric of the dress! In short the dress was promptly ripped off and catapulted into the middle of the backyard as this diva gave the neighbours more than their morning coffee as a 30second spider-ridding jig was performed before an embarrassed scurry into the house!