Grace Jones

The queen of fashion arrives fashionably late, but after a three-and-a-half decade wait since Grace Jones last dominated Adelaide, what's an extra hour? 

The 69-year-old legend kicks off with signature visual flair, powering out her cover of Iggy Pop’s 'Nightclubbing' through a feathered gold skull mask, before lifting it up to perch above her face like a deathly totem. She then morphs into a golden-maned lion for the sublime new wave of 'Private Life', perched on all fours twitching to her six-piece band as if caught in a net.

As the night advances, the wines downed, her rich resonant voice turns up to 11 but loses a hint of its magic, compensated for by a rising theatrical danger as she careens around the stage thrashing a reluctant costume designer and leaping aboard the shoulders of a distressed security guard. Jones is right at the precipice between life-of-the-party and cab-ride-home.

Tripping up on her flamboyant high heels only to land perfectly perched upon a stool, Jones smiles imperiously. "Don’t worry honey," she purrs to the 5000 enthralled fans watching on in Elder Park, "it’s the shoes, not the wine."

 

Grace Jones, Elder Park, 28 Feb, 8:45pm, $85-$149

https://www.adelaidefestival.com.au/2018/grace-jones