Australian Duo Tributes Carpenters
JayLumbee
19 Jun 2009
Carpenters duo on top of the world
SUZIE KEEN
June 16, 2009
Source: Independent Weekly (Australia)
Darren Mapes has been channelling ’70s icons the Carpenters for around 10 years – and it doesn’t look like he’ll be hanging up his Harry-high-pants and frilled shirts any time soon.
The cabaret veteran started out doing a serious tribute show about the lives of siblings Karen and Richard Carpenter, who recorded 11 albums and achieved five top-10 singles before Karen died of cardiac arrest in 1983 after years of battling anorexia.
“We were dressed up in these ‘70s outfits and we looked ridiculous … but because the lives of the Carpenters were so sad, it wasn’t really fun,” Mapes says of the show.
So the “serious Carpenters” were replaced by two lovable characters from the country – twins Darren and Sharon Carpenter – in a hilarious script by Mapes and co-writer Linda Nagle.
“Daz and Shaz” aren’t really cut out for the farming life, but they believe they have found their destiny when they discover one of their dad's old vinyl records from their American namesakes. This sets the scene for a stage show offering a uniquely Australian take on The Carpenters, complete with 16 songs and classic ’70s costumes.
The Carpenters From Kempsey was a sell-out success at the Adelaide Cabaret Festival two years ago, and Mapes and fellow performer Susie Dunn are bringing the show back to the Dunstan Playhouse this Wednesday and Thursday for the current festival.
He describes it as “Kath and Kim-style humour” and “a tribute to cabaret with a twist”. “It’s a much better way of portraying it. And people who love the music also get a bit of a laugh.”
Mapes can’t recall a night where the audience hasn’t ended up singing along to well-known hits such as “Close To You”, “Calling Occupants”, “Top of the World”, “We’ve Only Just Begun” and, his current favourite, “Only Yesterday”.
He insists audience members don’t have to be Carpenters fans to enjoy the performance, and many people comments after they have seen it that they recognised more songs than they thought they would.
Mapes himself grew up on a farm in Warwick in New South Wales, which helped inspire the storyline. As for Kempsey, its selection as the setting was fairly random.
“We thought Kempsey had a good ring to it! They are basically the childhood experiences I had growing up, with the names and places changed.”
Despite having performed the show off and on for more than six years, Mapes isn’t sick of the music yet and looks likely to continue channelling Richard Carpenter via Darren Carpenter for a while to come.
“To be perfectly honest, I never was a Carpenters fan,” he says. “It was a gig I fell into. You could say I embraced them late in life.
“It’s the sort of show that just won’t die. I’m an actor and a singer and a musician, so this is the ideal gig for me.”
– The Carpenters of Kempsey, Dunstan Playhouse, June 17-18
SUZIE KEEN
June 16, 2009
Source: Independent Weekly (Australia)
Darren Mapes has been channelling ’70s icons the Carpenters for around 10 years – and it doesn’t look like he’ll be hanging up his Harry-high-pants and frilled shirts any time soon.
The cabaret veteran started out doing a serious tribute show about the lives of siblings Karen and Richard Carpenter, who recorded 11 albums and achieved five top-10 singles before Karen died of cardiac arrest in 1983 after years of battling anorexia.
“We were dressed up in these ‘70s outfits and we looked ridiculous … but because the lives of the Carpenters were so sad, it wasn’t really fun,” Mapes says of the show.
So the “serious Carpenters” were replaced by two lovable characters from the country – twins Darren and Sharon Carpenter – in a hilarious script by Mapes and co-writer Linda Nagle.
“Daz and Shaz” aren’t really cut out for the farming life, but they believe they have found their destiny when they discover one of their dad's old vinyl records from their American namesakes. This sets the scene for a stage show offering a uniquely Australian take on The Carpenters, complete with 16 songs and classic ’70s costumes.
The Carpenters From Kempsey was a sell-out success at the Adelaide Cabaret Festival two years ago, and Mapes and fellow performer Susie Dunn are bringing the show back to the Dunstan Playhouse this Wednesday and Thursday for the current festival.
He describes it as “Kath and Kim-style humour” and “a tribute to cabaret with a twist”. “It’s a much better way of portraying it. And people who love the music also get a bit of a laugh.”
Mapes can’t recall a night where the audience hasn’t ended up singing along to well-known hits such as “Close To You”, “Calling Occupants”, “Top of the World”, “We’ve Only Just Begun” and, his current favourite, “Only Yesterday”.
He insists audience members don’t have to be Carpenters fans to enjoy the performance, and many people comments after they have seen it that they recognised more songs than they thought they would.
Mapes himself grew up on a farm in Warwick in New South Wales, which helped inspire the storyline. As for Kempsey, its selection as the setting was fairly random.
“We thought Kempsey had a good ring to it! They are basically the childhood experiences I had growing up, with the names and places changed.”
Despite having performed the show off and on for more than six years, Mapes isn’t sick of the music yet and looks likely to continue channelling Richard Carpenter via Darren Carpenter for a while to come.
“To be perfectly honest, I never was a Carpenters fan,” he says. “It was a gig I fell into. You could say I embraced them late in life.
“It’s the sort of show that just won’t die. I’m an actor and a singer and a musician, so this is the ideal gig for me.”
– The Carpenters of Kempsey, Dunstan Playhouse, June 17-18
