Live Review: Em Rusciano – Outgrown 2024 in Perth
Em Rusciano in Outgrown Live at the Perth Concert Hall on the 26th of July 2024.
Review by Sheldon Ang
Photography by Sheldon Ang Photography
The planets of comedy, musical, and narration orbit around the sun of aging, as the hands of the biological clock inexorably sweep across the face of time. Such is the inevitable journey for all matter, as we meander through life’s periodic chart listed with combustible elements, succumbing to multiple exothermic reactions as we hit a birthday milestone. Age is just a number, so they reckon – but “yeah nah,” says Em Rusciano to a capacity crowd of 1700 at the Perth Concert Hall.
The 45-year-old’s latest tour Outgrown facetiously draws her personal experiences from the purgatories of ADHD, autism, and early menopause – the perfect storm fused across three low-pressure systems, approaching in tonight’s version of Meet the Press. So, when Frontier Touring invited this photographer/writer to Outgrown – he knew he had to see it “from the lens of others” (no pun intended) – because none of these chapters are relevant to him – well, not that he knows off. But as the show progresses, he realises the only prerequisite is owning a conscious mind.
And so, it’s rare to attend a performance with little expectation or care, but then immerse in every word and detail channeling from a stranger, riding through the undulations of one’s experience, finally leaving with a lingering afterthought. Em Rusciano is a performer of all trades; she sings (as proven on Australian Idol), captivating, and beaming dark humour in a mixed bag of hilarity and facetiousness in the f*ckeries of aging.
Rusciano graces the stage at 8:10, swallowed in a gown of extravagance, decorated with overgrown flowers – and of course, the headpiece that is replicated across the floor among her audiences. She looks as if she’s about to strut on the Parisian catwalk across the Seine for the Olympic Opening Ceremony, with the dress commissioned by (say) Lagerfeld. Thank god she shuns Jimmy Choo’s six-inch, instead opting for boots to stabilise her center of gravity. Her face is filled with contentment, gratitude, and liberation as the crowd are showing their appreciation, as if Kylie Minogue is doing The Locomotion in ‘89. As the show lingers, she peels off the grandeur layers, perhaps a symbolic transition from the masquerade of the past to revealing her mental demons, by speaking on a stage that’s plotted with (once again) overgrown flowers and talented musos.
I’m not all right at 45…she sings on a high note, stretching the 5. Her quarrels are underlined from the start. Her biological clock is ticking as she filters through life’s certainties in the next 90 minutes; not on taxes, not on death – just certain midpoints in life’s crisis.
Em can be quirkily charming in one minute, thanks to punchlines such as “My vagina is not dancing anymore,” as she points her fingers between her legs while staring at “Dave”, then launching the vitality and anger into a shirt front territory, “I have slutty ears,” referencing her ADHD, with every noise being discernible such as her husband’s morning ritual from the poop poop in the dunnies to the shicks shicks during brushing of his teeth. Nevertheless, she’s unintimidating even when she’s angry – think of Julia Roberts in My Best Friend’s Wedding – after all, she’s everyone’s bestie tonight. The battle-hardened Rusciano is also a mentor and advisor in a Q&A session during the VIP preshow event. Nevertheless, she remains vulnerable, turning into a mentee, crying for help in times of need – and that’s when the 1700 besties do the Creed song.
But I now know that I cannot turn back time, heaven knows I’ve tried that, she sings on being neurodivergent, sounding very much like our associate Aussie Pink, in a Pink-esque ballad, oozing the palpable sincerity through her heartfelt vocal projection that is made for the arenas. Pure, organic manifestation.
“Thank you, Perth,” she ends the poignant track with a shattered voice, punctuated by sobbing emotion, and drawing a collective empathy of 1700. The mood is somber; behind the bravado is a girl crying for help.
“I think if you’re a neurodivergent, you’d understand how I was feeling, and I feel I’m really afraid of being misunderstood, misinterpreted so I find myself over explaining everything all the time.” She then sees the light with a comical twist, “Well this a standup comedy show, laughter through tears is my favourite emotion.” The audience erupts.
Rusciano sacrifices for the good fight. She rejected an invitation from Meet the Press, only to reverse her decision due to the future of her son, Leo. “If nobody talks about this stuff, and if nobody uses their platform to try to change the systems that are set up for ADHD, autistic kids, and for adults to fail, then nothing will ever change…one thing you don’t know is that they wanted me to sing after I did that speech…what in the Barbara Streisand was I thinking.” Again, silence turns to eruption. Ah Em, always ending with a smile.
There are a couple of cameos, such as “Menopausia – the menopause dragon from the House of Pussy”- a symbolic barrier against sexual desire, hovering across the stage. It is a fun-filled personification, borrowed from the wardrobe of The Masked Singer. And finally, there’s the Wicked witch – but we’ll not spoil the dramatic ending.
And there we have it, without revealing too much of the spoilers. The emotional undulation in Outgrown is rated 9g (force); the audiences ride on the hilarious daylight express of entertainment, appealing to the visual and audio sensory through illusion, only to be swerved into the cold shadows of head space within the spectrum of reality for Rusciano, and many, many others.
When it rains, it pours. But the silver lining is never far away.
Thank you, Emma, for spreading your message.
Em Rusciano is touring across Australia with her latest show Outgrown. Tickets are available from Frontier Touring
Sheldon Ang Media would like to thank Frontier Touring and Em Rusciano for the Press Accreditation.
About the Writer/Photographer: Perth based Sheldon Ang Media (est. May 2022) have been accredited to almost 100 of the hottest acts including Taylor Swift (ERAS Tour in Sydney), KNOTFEST (Melbourne), Coldplay (Perth), KISS, P!NK, Fridayz Live, Robbie Williams and Rod Stewart with reviews shared by the likes of UB40, Delta Goodrem, The Wiggles and Toni Childs on social media. He has interviewed rockers Suzi Quatro, Ace Frehley (KISS), John Steel (The Animals), Frank Ferrer (Guns N Roses), Phil X (Bon Jovi), Andrew Farris (INXS) plus over 45 artists. He’s a contributor on Triple M Albany as a music journalist.
