“Quigley is phenomenal... flawless music and faultless storytelling, this is a journey you shouldn’t miss.”
Red Dress & the Sugar Man
"Romeo's heart... is bleeding. His chest pounds like the empty throb of a septic wound. As he vaguely contemplates the notion that, while his heartbreak is overwhelming and all consuming, it is but a droplet in the torrent of all that is and all that has been... he waits... he doesn't know what he's waiting for... he just waits."
Recently, Marisa has spread her wings as a librettist and cabaret performer, writing and starring in her knockout cabaret show, Red Dress and The Sugar Man at the Adelaide and Melbourne Fringe Festivals, as well as in regional Victoria and the Northern Territory. With a live band on stage and sumptuous harmonies, Red Dress & the Sugar Man is a modern-day tragedy of poetic proportions. The show tells the story of Romeo and Rosie, two likely characters drowning in an ocean of regret.
One need not be familiar with the work or style of Tom Waits to appreciate Red Dress & the Sugar Man, one need only have an inkling of the complexities of heartbreak, passion and inner turmoil and a love of great music, moving words and powerful vocals. If you love Nick Cave, Leonard Cohen, Bonnie Raitt or Etta James and don’t mind a walk through the seedy side of town, you’ll love Red Dress & the Sugar Man.
Adelaide Fringe Reviews
Five Star Review from Adelaide's "The Advertiser"
10 out of 10 Review from "The Adelaide Show"
Four Star Review from "The Upside News"
Adelaide Theatre Guide Review
“There are times when the atmosphere is conjured so vividly as to resemble a David Lynch movie.”
Her Story
At the tender age of 21, sipping cheap Bourbon in a typical Northern Territory house, across the road from the typical Northern Territory pub from which I eked a living, I was introduced to the eclectic sounds and scapes of Tom Waits. “Nighthawks at the Diner” was to be my first Tom Waits album and the beginning of a healthy obsession with all things Waitsian.