Déjà Vu critical success

With several sold-out shows and wonderful reviews, I've now completed the Melbourne Fringe season of my latest solo show, Déjà Vu (And Other Forms of Knowing). Below are the reviews:

"Sublime to watch... An eerie and fascinating physical exploration... a truly original and exciting show." - Myf Clark,  Aussie Theatre

"Nightmarishly funny... with a special talent for mischievous humour. Déjà Vu is dreamlike and will leave you mystified." - Cameron Woodhead, The Age

"Truly beautiful... (Snelling) is never less than an engaging presence... It's like something out of Beckett; an Endgame for one." - Tim Byrne, Timeout

"Dance theatre at its best." - Anne-Marie Peard, Sometimes Melbourne

"Snelling is spellbinding... a master chameleon of movement, a physical provocateur,  - Jo Daly, Weekend Notes

"A spectacular performance... her acting talent is phenomenal." - Penny Stephens, Milkbar Mag

"Brilliant... a piece that allows the audience to take away different perspectives." - April Brenner, BCause Arts

"An exciting piece that will have you working from beginning to end." - Amber Bock, The Plus Ones

"Every scene is visually striking... Andi has such incredible control of her body." - Keith Gow

Image by Sarah Walker

Image by Sarah Walker

Déjà Vu (And Other Forms of Knowing) coming to Melbourne Fringe

My hotly anticipated new solo show is tearing up the rehearsal room and almost ready to go! Ticket sales have rocketed away, with Opening Night already 50% sold! After the huge success of #DearDiary - a show which is still on tour as we speak! - I am excited to be returning to my dancing roots and taking my work in a completely different direction. I've thrown out the pages and am diving body-first into my subconscious mind in this dark physical theatre exploration of all those things we only know subliminally. Through warped physical movement, I explore the realm of déjà vu where dreams and intuition collide. From smoke and darkness, a mysterious creature will emerge to draw you away from reality and into the vacuum of déjà vu. 

(Image: Sarah Walker)

#DearDiary at Howard Fine Acting Studio

First stop on the #DearDiary tour was the Howard Fine Acting Studio. I performed the show with a Q&A (which almost went longer than the show itself!) to the Studio's full-time and part-time acting students, as well as members of the public who also turned up for the joyride. Once again, it was a full house and a special night. There was even a man there who had seen the very first preview show at Melbourne Fringe 2015 and had decided to come back to see where the show was at now!

#DearDiary Encore Season success

Once again, #DearDiary has enjoyed sell-out shows and further critical acclaim during its June encore season at The Butterfly Club. The Age's Entertainment Guide even featured the show in its Top 20 Things To Do in Melbourne. Click the links below to read some of the interesting articles and listen to radio interviews of Andi talking about the unique nature of the show and its extraordinary ongoing journey.

Schoolgirl's diary shared on stage via Herald Sun/Whitehorse Leader
#DearDiary in The Shortlist Top 20 via The Age
Five Pearls of Wisdom from Andi Snelling's Teenage Diary via Scenestr
#DearDiary Interview via SYN FM
#DearDiary Interview via WYN FM (click on 19th May)
#DearDiary Interview via The Australia Times
Meet Andi Snelling via Scribble Creative

#DearDiary featured in The Age's Shortlist of Top 20 Things To Do in Melbourne

Small Time Criminals filming

I have begun filming an exciting new project by innovative game-makers, Pop-Up Playground. They have leased an old bank in Preston and transformed the entire building into an interactive bank heist experience, Small Time Criminals. As part of this experience, players will watch footage of some of the bank's employees to get clues. A concurrent webseries will also run featuring this motley crew of bankers and their office antics. Cue my character - Sally...

MC for Melbourne Knowledge Week

I have just MCed Human Habitats: High Density as part of The City of Melbourne's Melbourne Knowledge Week 2016. It was a sold-out event, with speakers from diverse fields exploring the opportunities and challenges of living in a high-density future. I love MC work because of the wide variety of industries I get to experience through it. I can say without a doubt that urban planners and architects are fun people! Here's a photo of me on the night. Hands gestures come free! #habitats16 #MKW2016

#DearDiary encore season

Due to popular demand, my one-woman existential joyride, #DearDiary is having an encore season 1st - 5th June, 7pm at The Butterfly Club. I am delighted to have been asked back and can't wait to share the show now that it's even bigger and better, following the sold-out season at Adelaide Fringe. Tickets went on sale 24 hours ago and are already disappearing! Bookings here. 

Melbourne International Comedy Festival

This is my 5th year in a row of performing in the Melbourne International Comedy Festival! YAY! This year, I'm doing Cliffhanger with my impro comedy group, The Big Hoo-Haa Melbourne. And for my first show of the Festival, I won Cliffhanger with my improvised Children's Musical "Stick Town." Who knew sticks could prove such a vote-worthy storyline with a comedy audience?! Here's me holding the winner's trophy, which is almost bigger than my ego! Come check us out every Tues, Thurs & Sat of the Festival, 10pm-11pm at The Butterfly Club. Book here.

Me with fellow improvisers, Rik Brown and Luke Ryan.

New Project: That's Not a Daffodil!

I have just completed a week of Creative Development for a cute little show called That's Not a Daffodil! by Jump Leads Productions, directed by Gorkem Acaroglu. It's a stylised, physical show with songs and shadow puppetry, based on the award-winning children's book by Elizabeth Honey. There are plans for this show to go on a large-scale tour next year, so watch this space! Meanwhile, here's me in the lead role of Tom, a young boy who learns an important lesson about growing a plant.

#DearDiary Critical Acclaim

Here is the final rundown of amazing reviews from #DearDiary's Adelaide Fringe 2016 season:

- ★★★★1/2 "Snelling is charming, charismatic and hilarious, pulling off this unique show with a flair that grips the audience...engaging and funny...Snelling’s performance is outstanding." - Glam Adelaide http://www.glamadelaide.com.au/main/fringe-review-deardiary/

- ★★★★ "A compelling show... An entertaining, at times deeply moving, look at the nature of the human condition... inquisitive and insightful." - The Advertiser http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/entertainment/adelaide-fringe/theatre/adelaide-fringe-review-2016-deardiary/news-story/41618e680b3d6c8fc11db852f059bff5

- ★★★★"A fascinating experience...a talented and warm performer." - The Clothesline http://theclothesline.com.au/dear-diary-adelaide-fringe-review/

- ★★★★ "#DearDiary‬ is self-reflexive, clever and moving." - Rip It Up http://ripitup.com.au/festivals/adelaide-fringe-festival/adelaide-fringe-reviews/deardiary#.VuIbi8d2OYW

- "Human, honest and gritty... superbly nuanced... The audience felt, and truly was, at one with Snelling" - The Barefoot Review http://www.thebarefootreview.com.au/menu/theatre/119-2014-adelaide-reviews/1340-deardiary.html

- "Snelling’s account of the value and the virtue of keeping a diary and her engaging honesty make #DearDiary a charming and illuminating confessional... An unpretentious show told with honesty and charm by a performer who lights up the stage."  - Canberra Critics Circle 
http://ccc-canberracriticscircle.blogspot.com.au/2016/03/deardiary-adelaide-fringe-festival-2016.html?m=1

- "She is a phenomenal actor and singer, captivating the audience during the entire performance." - Fringe Review
http://fringereview.co.uk/review/adelaide-fringe/2016/deardiary/ 


The Act of Storytelling interview

I got interviewed recently by The Act of Storytelling about ‪#‎DearDiary‬. We talked about my lifelong obsession with diary-keeping and the profound effect this has had on my understanding of myself. “One of the questions my show asks is how do you measure your existence? I think I’m quite obsessed with wanting to document, in particular, feelings and thoughts. I think it’s a very existential thing. How do I know that I actually exist?” Click here for the full interview.