Baby Bi Bi Bi

The Butterfly Club comes alive with the glory of Melbourne Fringe Festival and the wickedly funny cabaret show Baby Bi Bi Bi is at the centre. Clever, crude, unapologetic and mesmerising, Erin Pattison, Samantha Andrew and Annabel Larcombe perform and deliver a series of witty vignettes in the hope of demystifying what it means to be a comfortable bisexual woman. 

Pulsing with licentious debauchery and undertones, the trio maintain an aura of charisma and energy throughout the 55-minute show. Pattison, Andrew and Larcombe each transform personal stories, life-changing moments and bad relationships into seven original songs that pay homage to many genres, including Aussie punk to 90s R&B. Clear standouts are ‘Do I wanna be you (Or do I wanna fuck you?)’ and ‘Salad with the girls, but in a gay way’ generate the most laughs and jeers. 

If you delve deeper and look beyond the “portable closet” of genitals, you will see moments of vulnerability emerge onstage. Baby Bi Bi Bi is more than a cheap thrill: it’s an honest portrayal of what it feels to be different and live in fear of judgement. Or more accurately, accepting who you are and the anticipation of coming out to your nearest and dearest. In particular, stories of cute dates in first-year uni featuring red wine contrasted with an inability to come out to family, or dealing with a mother’s disapproval despite being in a same-sex relationship. Much to my surprise, the woven stories moved me. 

Andrew was a riot in her on-point portrayal of a straight male’s logic around bisexuality, as was her and Pattison’s recount of their brief fling when they became friends. Jaeger bombs are usually a simultaneous good and bad move. “Combos with Annabel Larcombe” weren’t as tiresome as envisaged, and her ability on the piano was impressive for an “untrained” musician. 

Performing to a sold-out crowd, Baby Bi Bi Bi is one Melbourne Fringe Festival show that cannot be missed. 

Baby Bi Bi Bi 
The Butterfly Club, 5 Carson Place, off Little Collins Street, Melbourne
Till Sunday, 23 September 2018
thebutterflyclub.com/show/baby-bi-bi-bi