Matt Hewson
Bob ‘Bungo’ Starkie, guitarist from legendary Australian band Skyhooks, is excited for his upcoming Geelong show, but even more excited to see his daughter, Arabella Frahn-Starkie, performing here the week before.
“It’s kind of unique, us playing in the same town within a week of each other, it was completely coincidental,” Starkie said.
The Bob Starkie Show, featuring the music of Skyhooks, takes place at the Wool Exchange on October 15, while Arabella’s modern dance performance ‘Pictures and Ghosts’ will be at Platform on October 6 and 7.
Bob’s fatherly pride was evident when he spoke about his respect for his daughter’s creative work.
“She’s at the top of her game, and it’s great to see that,” he said.
“You go and see some of these contemporary pieces and, you know, I’d honestly much rather watch grass grow. But with Arabella’s performances, she has an edge, an entertainment edge.
“There’s humour, it’s entertainment. It really makes the show, takes it to another level.”
For her part, Arabella credits her father and her upbringing as a major influence on her creative output.
“My family in general, there was always wry humour, and you can see on the walls here in his house the art that I was exposed to.
“It’s always been very inspiring, seeing his dedication to his craft. He was rehearsing and practising every morning, and I think that diligence has been instilled in me as a performer.”
‘Pictures and Ghosts’, an examination of the ephemeral nature of performing arts and an investigation into how the process of documenting dance changes its nature, is an extension of the work Arabella did during her honours degree at the Victorian College of the Arts.
“The concept was born out of a love for dance, and a concern for those moments being lost as an ephemeral sort of experience,” Arabella said.
“And I became interested in that moment where dance and ephemera turns into something you can hold on to and experience again, and how, in some way, the moment is changed by being photographed or documented.”
Bob’s show, by contrast, is in itself a kind of documentation of music.
“In a way, it’s a period piece,” Bob said.
“The band members go with it, we were the frocks, platform shoes, there’s no shame. That was the thing about the Skyhooks, we had the audience from the first minute because they’re laughing, it was like, ‘Who are these idiots?’”
Bob said thanks to his band mates, his show was a faithful representation of the Skyhooks music.
“I think the original Skyhooks rhythm section with Freddie [Strauks] on drums is pretty hard to fault, but these guys are super professional, their energy is phenomenal,” he said.
“They are Skyhooks fans, and the bass player especially, he knows the songs better than I do.
“I have a female singer, Laura Davidson, which works really well. And she’s a bit like Shirl, in that you just don’t know what’s going to come out of her mouth. She’s great, she’s really got it.”
