Shanghai'd

A number of my best friends are celebrating milestone birthdays this year including two who had parties over the weekend.  My friend Julia has flown in from New York and Mr Rosanna and I attended her birthday dinner at Southgate on Saturday night.  It was all happening along St Kilda Road given it was also St Patrick's Day and Grand Prix weekend.  We were about to call it a night after dinner but as we'd parked near the Arts Centre, Mr Rosanna and I made an impromptu visit to the Spiegeltent instead.

Jenevieve Chang image via artscentremelbourne.com.au

So glad we did as we caught the very last night of the Shanghai Club hosted by Annette Shun Wah and featuring jazz band Blue Lotus and singer Jasmine Chen.  Wow - what a trip!  If you like a bit of naughty 1930s style cabaret and burlesque (full frontal nudity was involved : ) mixed with modern Chinese underground all housed under a Big Top circus tent, you might get the picture.

Image via altmedia.net.au

Mr R and I had a dance with the hipsters of Melbourne including one guy practising some pretty out there rap moves - all on his own.  I know some people think Hobart, Adelaide and Brisbane are all up and comers in the arts world but one part of me thinks that Melbourne will always be the cultural capital of Australia given what I saw on Saturday night.  It was ace!