RAT Parties & their descendents

The 80s are back: Powerhouse Museum

2009-12-13T18:32:00.000-08:00

Recent event- Dec 09- featuring lots of RAT memorabilia- Sydney.
CLICK LINK TO JAC'S FACEBOOK ALBUM
Or Powerhouse Museum link.

Jac Vidgen, Ian Reed (a later techie)

Tickets and Reno Dal, Mark Taylor (old pic)

Luna Park ticket (MY PERSONAL FAVOURITE) and posters

John Webber (right) looking pretty good at 54 or so!

Christiana Lehman and Ariel Blacker

X, Jac and Mazz Images- also still looking pretty good!

I was still in Thailand when this event happened and while it might be nice to see all that old stuff again, I wonder if such nostalgia isn't bad for the soul... ?

But then again, it was a fabulous time and we did have a lot of fun- a lot more than these days.

RAT article Dec 2009

2009-12-10T19:34:00.000-08:00

RAT people 80's #5

2007-02-11T05:29:00.000-08:00

I really don't know who took these pics. It was a long time ago.

RAT people 80's #4

2007-02-11T05:26:00.000-08:00

RAT people 80's #3

2007-02-11T05:23:00.000-08:00

RAT people 80's #2

2007-02-11T05:20:00.000-08:00

RAT people 80's

2007-02-11T05:17:00.000-08:00

Moombaratarama Melbourne 1986

2007-02-11T04:59:00.000-08:00

Just found these pics from a long lost event- though not of the event itself. Can't remember much about the event except that we lost a lot of money and even though a lot of people came from Sydney and Canberra, almost none came from Melbourne.

Ah well, such is life.

Here Simon Reptile, Ashley Rambukwella and Reno Dal:

Our faithful crew gathered at the stylish motel:

Reno broke a chair it seems:

This is Tony who came all the way from Canberra to be at the party.

Tony Brady was a faithful supporter and helper from Sydney.

MidsummerRATsdream c.1984

2007-02-11T04:40:00.000-08:00

We bought a huge amount of stuff for this party- dolls, streamers, toys, and "snow' and threw it over the audience for hours from the tops of a scissor lift.

We even found people passed out and buried under the piles of stuff...

OK, so it was silly and took at hell of a time to clean up- weeks in fact.

At the old Bijou Theatre in Balmain, Sydney.

Dinagyang Festival in Iloilo City in the Philippines

2007-01-29T03:34:00.000-08:00

Not really a descendent, more like a variant.

Jac wrote:

This is one of those festivals which has evolved from a combination
of ancient tribal and also more modern traditions. The origin of
this style of festival seems to have come from an island nearby
(closer to Boracay) - apparently it was initially about war, but now
involves Saint Nino (pronounced 'ninyo' - the manifestation of the
baby Jesus?) who represents peace...... go figure! Suffice to say,
lots of people have lots of fun and celebration - there's
dressing-up, drumming, dancing, drinking, plenty of colour and
movement - and seemingly pretty good vibes all around...... oh, and
of course eating! And, these days, the necessary commercial element
- but no-one seems to mind, and a good time was had by all.
*****

Pics by Jac Vidgen & Ed Cruz

Jac Vidgen: Lovapalooza, Manila

2007-01-26T20:45:00.000-08:00

Jac writes:
I thought you'd get a kick out of this little event which I caught a
bit of when I dismounted from (read 'crawled out of') a jeep near our
place today. It turned out to be some kind of promo for the
"Lovapalooza" event they have here around Valentine's Day - where
they try to set world kissing records!!! Apparently Hungary must
have surpassed their last year's record so they are keen to up the
stakes this year. Quirky little moment eh?!!

++++++++

I have to say I love the quirkiness of the Filipinos- a lot more fun than Sydney!

Bag Dog Party Jan 2007

2007-01-16T21:19:00.000-08:00

Jac wrote:
We were blessed with a "Bad Dog" party on our last night as a perfect
send-off. Bad Dog is the name of a party group who have been doing
very special events in Sydney for more than 4 years. Ed and I went
to our first 4 years ago - and our second last Sunday. They have a
real flavour of the early RAT parties (but with a much bigger lesbian
presence) - they get about 800 people, and they have them at Bowling
Clubs and sports clubs - often starting at 4pm and finishing at 11pm
on a Sunday. People dress up and it is very silly and very friendly.
This particular one had a sporting theme.... There were many friends
and acquaintances there so we had a very social time - as well some
great dancing and plenty of laughs. I've included a small selection
of pics. If you want to see more - check their website later in the
week http://www.baddog.net.au/.

Nation iV Party, Phuket, Thailand

2006-11-28T19:14:00.000-08:00

This three day event at the Bangkok Hilton was produced by fridae.com who announced this would be their last one- they just weren't making enough money out of the project- a reality that RAT discovered a long time ago.

The truth is that our parties were most successful for us so long as they remained more like a hobby.

Still, looks like a fitting farewell.

Jac sent me these shots the other day.

So good to see the creative party movement still continues somewhere...

Jac wrote:

The event was the Nation IV party at Phuket and these were taken on the
final night (Sunday) of 3 days of partying organized by the
Singapore-based Gay and Lesbian website Fridae.com. It was in fact
the last dance party they planned to do - they've been doing these
around Asia for the past 5 years but have decided to move on to other
endeavours..... well, we certainly know how demanding and expensive
it can be to produce dance parties!

Intimate Company 1992 Delicacies Revisited

2005-11-08T05:08:00.000-08:00

In 1992 ( we think) we reformed to do a show in a maze at a RAT party at Bondi Beach but it was a bit disappointing- just didn't seem to recapture the old feeling. And then my coat and shoes were stolen from the Coat Check when the staff went home before I could retrieve my things. Not a good night.

Muzzle, a play by Reno- Intimate Company 1987

2005-11-08T05:04:00.000-08:00

Like all of my plays it was based on a premise that the audience was never told. John Webber's opening monologue achieved epic proportions. (John also became our studio photographer- and still is when we can find him, though he doesn't have a studio anymore.)

We gave about 8 performances of Muzzle and some people came back with friends 4 times!!

As ever I was doing three things at once- running the event business, working on the parties and writing theatre for Intimate Company to perform.

Boys Night Out 1987

2005-11-08T04:53:00.000-08:00

Phillip of Broadwave invented this hairstyle for me; during corporate negotiations the tail was slicked down and disappeared, for parties it was held up with beetroot sugar.

Paul and Graig. Paul was from the UK while Craig was just a familiar part of city life. I miss Craig, he was alwys the balancer, the carer and the fun.

Ignatius Jones was always making a point back then, and I was often arguing and enjoying. I do miss those sparring flights of fancy.

I am guessing but I think this is Dot Dingle and another smelling a foot. I know it was a show but I just can't remember why...

This is Akira and another fellow... I remember he was quite pleasant.

Willy Young (now William Yang) was often great at capturing the seductive and the cute. Here Kevin demurely prepares back stage.

RAT History (The Reno Rat Parties)

2005-11-08T04:49:00.000-08:00

Rat Rok Rek Oct 83
Rat Sur Rect April 84
A Midsummer Rat's Dream Jan 85
Ratizm April 85
Rat A Round (& Square) June 85
Chez Rat, Rumours Nightclub Sept 85 (Private Party- Ratizens Only)
Lunratic, Dec 85
Oceanratting, Bondi Beach, Jan 86
Ratparade, Paddo Town Hall, Mar 86
Ratarama, Enmore, June 86
Ratricarnivale, Paddo, Sept 86
Moombaratarama...

Ratparade 1986 (from Reno Archive)

2005-11-08T04:48:00.000-08:00

The ticket has a piece of fabric. like a clothing label, stuck to it by hand.
Almost all the tickets had a hand-made feature in the beginning.

Billy Yip designed all the tickets and posters for all the parties, and the names of the parties and the fixed decor. I used to add, enhance and play with the staging and the technology.

Ratparade brought together around a dozen young designers, a showcase Fashion Dance Party. No-one had done that before and it was a joy to give these designers a platform they could neve rhave without us.

People tried to copy this later... I guess the logical extension, finally was Fashion Week, but that was different.

Ratism 1985 April

2005-11-08T04:42:00.001-08:00

This was one of many parties at Paddington Town Hall during the days when you could have a party there. Now it is rectricted to quiet and formal events, as if this somehow serves the community better.

The same thing happened in North Sydney. We used to be able to use a whole bunch of parks there until the council decided that such parties were 'disruptive' to the night environment. Now you can't use any of them at night.

BTW the night environment means total silence. No wonder people think this is one of the most boring cities in the world- no party noise, no street sellers, no communal magic...

Oh well, so it goes.

Ratism 1985 April

2005-11-08T04:42:00.000-08:00

Fifi L'Amour, a dear friend of mine who wandered off to Europe to become a Cabaret Queen, graced us with her raunch and her pure spirit- an imp, an elf and an empress.

Is Patrick in this picture or not?

Patrick always said he was straight and yet, like so many people who came to RAT, he loved to play and tease and laugh.

No harm done and lots of fun.

This was Billy's great creation. He spent a huge amount of time in developing a ritual of belief in the RAT ehtos- never spoken but wonderful.

One didn't always understand Billy but one always discovered his genius in the end.

PRATY carnivale 1986

2005-11-08T04:37:00.000-08:00

This was an amazing event- we have whole families running cooking stalls in Paddington Town Hall, lots of diverse entertainment, and an audience of the whole ehtnic mix, the truly exotic and the gay community- and you couldn't have had a happier mix.

I was very proud of the success of this event.

It really did achieve a sense of community.

Of course, later on the idea was sludged by the nay-sayers who preferred a more gutted beige kind of feel.

You know how attractive beige is?

Oceanratting Rap Dance

2005-11-08T04:33:00.000-08:00

You can't capture the magic of that night... sunset over Bondi Beach, supping Julianne Jonas Cocktails, listening to Claus Haack cool jazz, dodging the robots on the bar... and then the shows, the dancing,.

Lunratic- Luna Park Dec 85

2005-11-08T04:27:00.000-08:00

Adrian Gough & Reno

2005-11-08T04:24:00.000-08:00

I guess this was taken in the early 80s.

Adrian was a key part of my production work, adding his panache and inspiration to the whole process of the work.

He made his presence felt with vigor and rigor but never sought the limelight.

With all my thanks.

RIP.

RATparade 1986 (from Reno Archive)

2005-11-07T23:11:00.000-08:00

Tickets, Handbills by Billy Yip

1986 et al (FROM JAC PART 4)

2005-11-07T03:51:00.000-08:00

Jac & Wayne

1986

Simon Reptile (from Jac Part 3)

2005-11-07T03:48:00.000-08:00

Simon Reptile LASERat, 1989

Simon & Danny, Congrats 1987

More from Jac Part Two

2005-11-07T03:43:00.000-08:00

RAT banners by Billy Yip.

Rat 1986

More from Jac Nov 9

2005-11-07T03:34:00.000-08:00

Ratrapping 1986

Multiple Maniax

Mark Taylor & Slimy Rockpile (SImon Reptile)

Jac & Grace Jones 1988

Jac & Boy George 1989

Jac & Akira 19ratty7 1987

Rat Images and from Jac in Manila Plus 1

2005-11-06T05:07:00.000-08:00

Though the above is not actually from the Rat Archive but a picture of Ed Cruz, it is part of the spirit of Rat fun, so I think it should stay.

Doris Fish Midsummer Rat's Dream (Bijou)

2005-11-04T22:52:00.000-08:00

Billy at Bijou Party

2005-11-04T22:50:00.000-08:00

Ratsurrect 1983 Ticket

2005-11-04T22:30:00.000-08:00

First Tickets

2005-11-04T22:25:00.000-08:00

The first RAT ticket Billy did was RAT ROK REK- a corrugated iron (plastic) fence and a billboard with graffiti, tiny animals and lawn.

Oceanratting was a couple of years later, in conjunction with the South Pacific Festival- a plastic envelope with sand, shells, mermaid and printed ticket- and a small safety pin to wear it with.