It only happens once or twice a Fringe season: a little show arrives in Adelaide without much fanfare and puts on a spectacular performance that blows me away. The show I’m talking about, in this instance, is Absolute Trash. And, although I went along expecting to enjoy the performance, I was not aware how creative, clever and utterly astounding it would be!

Residing in the Gold Coast, the Glitter Martini team that created Absolute Trash is made up of five talented cast members.  MC Natrasha Binit did the heavy lifting on the first night of the show, trying their best to ramp up the shy, timid crowd and sparking a bit of life into the audience with some trashy humour (pun intended). Rachel and Elle provided the aerial and circus part of the show, with dual aerial lyra work, gut-wrenching contortionist displays and a beautiful aerial silks performance. The comedy was left to Calum the bin chicken and was scattered throughout the show, perfecting its pacing. When Absolute Trash needed a bit of a lift he was there; when audience participation was needed, he was there; and when a song was required, he was there. I can’t remember a show I’ve seen recently where all the beats hit so consistently. Of course, I can’t leave Darcie out of the mix. For the first time in my life I saw bottle walking - and just to add to her list of talents, she is magnificent on the trapeze as well.

Absolute Trash is a show about trash, but underneath it all, is so much more. There were no weak links in this cast, and everybody played their parts beautifully. No performance or skit overstayed its welcome - just when I thought they’d overplayed their comedy, the show changed pace and brought something new and exciting to the stage. I could spend hundreds of words gushing over how great this show and these performers are, but I want you to see it for yourself. These are the types of artists who not only need your support but deserve it. A show that doesn’t live up to its name!

FIVE STARS *****

Reviewed by Shane Berketa