Review: Dancefloor Conversion Therapy

‘Doof doof’ might sound like the start of the EastEnders theme for a Scottish person, but in Australia it ignites memories of EDM outdoor parties. Australian performer Jonny Hawkins, alongside their DJ partner Mikala Westall, brings Bush club culture to Assembly, instilling their ideas of how the dancefloor is a sight of healing and community building to varying degrees of success. 

‘Aunty’ Jonny – who looks uncannily like a genderfuck Joe Exotic – is a great host, bringing an energy that is needed for a Fringe midnight basement slot. They get the crowd worked up and wanting a good time, something that is crucial for any decent party. Jonny was a pentecostal youth minister until their early 20s and it is illuminating to hear about how parties have become something of a new religion for them and how it has helped them explore their queer identity. 

Their mantra of the dancefloor, which is shared by Westall, is obviously very important to them but it doesn’t seem to interrogate dynamics around gender, race and different bodies and how this can affect the dancefloor.

The show could also use a lot more structure. Jonny keeps doing time checks with Mikala which really puts the brakes on the momentum of the show. Anecdotes aren't completed – including the most interesting one about Jonny’s time in the church – as they run out of time. It is a show with promise and an interesting message but perhaps needs more of a script.