PERFORMER Catherine Alcorn’s final day job in film and television production before quitting to pursue cabaret fulltime was as production manager in the Northern Territory on Oprah’s Ultimate Australian Adventure in 2010.
“It got to the point where I realised performing and being on stage was what I really wanted to do and having those other jobs pulled my energy in the wrong direction,” the Sydneysider said.
Alcorn’s first foray was with her cabaret hit The Divine Miss Bette focusing on the career of Bette Midler and although she loved performing the show, she felt in 2013 it was time for her next project.
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READ NOW“I was on a plane listening to Fleetwood Mac’s greatest hits; one of my favourite songs of theirs came on, As Long As You Follow by Christine McVie and it just hit me,” she said.
“As soon as I touched down I emailed Adelaide Cabaret Festival with my light bulb idea, I told them I didn’t have anything else put together than that and within 24 hours they emailed back to say they loved it and added it to their program.
“I then had a deadline of six months to get the show together.”
Go Your Own Way: The Story of Christine McVie is a play with music, not a tribute show, where Alcorn plays McVie and her music is used to underscore dramatic moments.
“We walk in and out of scenarios, situations and times in her life,” Alcorn said.
“There are five of us on stage to reflect the band, with a female backing vocalist channelling Stevie Nicks, a guitarist, drummer and keyboardist.
“The show is predominately focused around the time of Rumours and that’s what the band’s makeup was then.”
Originally a 60-minute show for cabaret festivals, it has been extended to 85 minutes to suit theatre tours and has been rewritten since McVie returned to Fleetwood Mac.
“When we opened in 2013 in Adelaide she hadn’t rejoined the tour yet so we’ve had to revise and change the structure of the show to tie in with this decision,” Alcorn said.
“Timing is everything and we couldn’t have planned their recent tour better. The journey we’ve had along with them is pretty serendipitous.”
THE ESSENTIALS
What: Go Your Own Way: The Story of Christine McVie
Where: Downstairs at the Maj, His Majesty’s Theatre
When: November 18 to 21
Tickets: www.ticketek.com.au