WHAT CRITICS HAVE SAID ABOUT TREVOR AND COURTNEY: "Mardi Gras Royalty!" SMH "Maximum gags per minute. We grinned, we gasped, we giggled... it was great fun!" Sydney Star Observer "A comic genius... flair, energy and originality" Outrage "The absolute star of (Priscilla) is Trevor Ashley. His rendition of "Whats Love Got To Do With It" is hysterical" The Daily “ultimately, however, it’s Shane Jenek’s doomed Angel that steals the show – a dazzling glitterball of energy and high camp” The West Australian "Dazzling, brilliant, biting humor laced with feather-deft timing." NY Blade
Gentlemen Prefer Blokes is a revue style musical comedy. Combining songs, parodies, and sketches, Courtney and Trevor (in his alter-ego Cleo Coupe) showcase their talents as cabaret performers and comediennes. Exploring the dynamic of the female comedy duo, and the rivalry between some of the great couplings in showbusiness history, Cleo and Courtney appear not only as themselves but as Velma and Roxie, Madonna and Britney, Kylie and Dannii, Patsy and Eddie and a hysterical take on Wicked as Elphaba and Glinda. But the familiar is not the only type of duo; Matthew Mitcham's bunny boiling fanclub, and two ex-gay Sarah Palin-inspired transsexuals who perform an evangelistic style service, and help the audience to "Pray the Gay Away". Linking these moments, clever and funny video sequences where we get a glimpse behind the scenes, and parodies of classic films like Beaches, The Devil Wears Prada, Australia and Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? "Blokes" combines not only humor and farce, but looks at the issues that face our community: politics, marriage, and the churches ex-gay movement. Songs may include Little Girls From Little Rock, Diamonds are a Girls Best Friend, Papa Don't Preach, Baby One More Time, I Got You Babe, Better the Devil You Know, Sisters are Doing it for Themselves and many more.
Trevor is best known to international audiences from his show-stopping turn as Miss Understanding in the world premiere cast of "Priscilla Queen of the Desert – the Musical", playing over 600 performances in the role between Sydney and Melbourne. The show has been seen by over 750,000 people and grossed over $70 mil at the box office. He is one of Australia's most versatile performers, having performed everywhere from the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall to alternative music festival Homebake, Carols by Candlelight to the Sydney Comedy Festival Gala (Channel 9) and sung his heart out at private parties for ALAN JONES, GREG NORMAN, ELLE MACPHERSON, DICK SMITH and RUSSELL CROWE to name a few. Trevor made his cabaret debut at the Sydney Cabaret Convention at age 18. The Cabaret Hotline called him "A knockout performer… the clear crowd favorite and the only one to emulate a 'cabaret sensibility'" while the SMH said "the convention struck gold in the form of dynamo Trevor Ashley." After this seasons followed at LaBar, Glen Street, Statement, Café Nine, School of Arts Café, The Stables, SideON, Civic Hotel, Street Theatre, Slide, and Chapel off Chapel. In 2001 he made his UK debut at The Talk of London, and had an extended season at New York's Don't Tell Mama, with undeniable rave reviews. His show Trevor! The Arena Mega Musical has been called: "a tour-de-force romp", "dazzling, brilliant, biting humor laced with feather-deft timing", "Ashley will go to any length to entertain an audience", and "an extraordinary, no-holds-barred performance" by the New York press. More recently, Trevor created his shows Pop Princess and Pop Princess 2: Australian Idle for the New Mardi Gras festival co-written with Phil Scott. The shows were the sell out hits of the festival, playing to standing room only and Trevor became "Mardi Gras Royalty!" with the SMH calling the show "A must see!". Trevor was also featured in DNA and blue magazines. As a drag performer, Trevor has been in high demand on the corporate market, and in Sydney gay clubs where he worked solidly for five years under the guise of his alter ego Cleopatra Coupe. As one of the few Sydney queens to sing live, Trevor is also a skilled impersonator, with his incredible vocals capturing Cher, Garland, Bassey, Midler, Liza, Dusty and Tina Turner. He also hosted the launch of Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, the Mardi Gras Parade and the DIVA Awards, Sydney drags night of nights. TV includes Comedy Inc. (9), GMA (10), Australia Day Live (10), The Mint (9), and Mornings with Kerri-Anne (9). As an arranger and orchestrator he has written for Caroline O'Connor, Todd McKenney, Paul Capsis, Rachel Beck and the Ensemble theatre's hit play End of the Rainbow. He has also musical directed for Maria Venuti, Jeanne Little and Shauna Jensen. Trevor has been nominated for two MO awards, and is the winner of several DIVA awards. He is a graduate of the Talent Development Project.
They say that nine tenths of a woman’s charm is illusion… and Courtney Act is living proof. She has the ability to bring women to their feet and men to their knees. But, she’s not like other girls… In 2003 Sydney boy Shane Jenek tried out for the first series of Australian Idol. Not quite making the cut he wasn’t discouraged, Shane bent the rules and his gender, returning the next day as Courtney Act. Courtney’s explosive, energetic performing style, coupled with her joyous personality, sent audiences wild in the first series of ‘Australian Idol’. With performances of songs like You Don’t Own Me, W.O.M.A.N. and You Shook Me All Night Long, the country was mesmerised and Australia had a new, slightly less conventional, sweetheart. Hot on the high heels of the TV series came the phenomenally successful sell-out Australian Idol Arena Tour where she stopped every show, performing a version of the Kylie Minogue/Robbie Williams duet ’Kids’ with Rob Mills. During all of the Idol excitement a record deal with Sony/BMG was struck which saw Courtney release ‘Rub Me Wrong’, a film clip and a top 40 chart single produced by legendary LA-based writer/producer David Norland who has worked with the likes of Janet Jackson and Madonna. Courtney has performed successful seasons at Heaven, London & Ibiza, Will & Toby’s, Sydney to name a few in a totally stunning night of live entertainment that is a must see. Courtney and has received fantastic reviews and left crowds amazed that she is not a real… um, blonde. Touching down from her EU tour Courtney whisked those legs to the west coast to add her sparkle to the Perth production of ‘Rent’ the musical. Courtney took on the role of Angel, the emotional core role in this hugely popular and confronting musical.“ultimately, however, it’s Shane Jenek’s doomed Angel that steals the show – a dazzling glitterball of energy and high camp” West Australian Courtney has exposed her talents as a writer for NW, TV Week, DNA Magazine and as a social reporter for Sydney’s Daily Telegraph. The readers of FHM magazine voted her as one of The World’s 100 Sexiest Women. New York’s Out Magazine awarded her as one of the World’s Most Influential People. Courtney has also graced the catwalk during Mercedes Australian Fashion Week and made appearances on TV shows including Australia’s Next Top Model, GMA with Bert, Mornings with Kerry Anne Kennerley, Burke’s Backyard, Cheese TV and Fat Pizza. Courtney enters the recording studio in January to commence work on her debut 5 Track EP, due for release in this summer. In between a vacuous social life and her hectic work schedule, Courtney acts as an ambassador for the AIDS Trust Of Australia and works several programs in the field of Youth Education. In her spare time Miss Act enjoys reading, Bikram yoga, saving the planet and cites Oprah Winfrey as her religious leader.
PHIL SCOTT Phill has s appeared on film as well as in sketch comedy television programs. His television appearances include The Dingo Principle and Three Men and a Baby Grand, satirical sketch television comedy programs for which he was a writer/performer with Jonathan Biggins and Drew Forsythe. Since 2000 he has co-written, composed and performed as an actor/musician in political satirical revues for the Sydney Theatre Company, including "Free Petrol", "Sunday in Iraq with George", "Much Revue About Nothing", "Stuff All Happens" and "Revue Sans Frontieres". He also appeared, with Max Gillies, in The Gillies Report and its sequels, "The Gillies Republic" and "Gillies and Company". He also co-wrote, with Jonathan Biggins, a new libretto of "Orpheus in the Underworld" for Opera Australia (2003), and also the AWGIE award winning musical "The Republic of Myopia" (2004- for which he also composed the music). The latter show starred Helen Dallimore, Tamsin Carroll and Simon Gleeson. Scott composed the score for the feature film "Those Dear Departed", for which he was nominated for an AFI Award. Scott also co-wrote the music for the miniseries Bodyline. Phillip Scott has written four novels. Three have been published in the US by Alyson Books: "One Dead Diva", "Gay Resort Murder Shock" and "Mardi Gras Murders". He was script consultant of the book of "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert- the Stage Musical" (2006). He writes a weekly column "Ad Lib" for Sydney's community paper SX. Scott has a music degree from Sydney University, and writes reviews for the international classical CD magazine Fanfare.
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