Catherine Alcorn as Christine McVie

Catherine Alcorn, who stars in Go Your Own Way: The Story of Christine McVie at Glen Street Theatre from May 27 to June 1, speaks to Neil Litchfield about the inspiration for the show.

On the eve of Fleetwood Mac’s long-awaited comeback tour, Christine McVie decided she would not give in to the pleas for her to rejoin the band. Instead, she tweeted “Sorry folks. No tour.”

McVie joined the legendary rock band in 1970 and wrote some of their biggest hits including ‘Over My Head’, ‘Say You Love Me’, ‘You Make Loving Fun’, ‘Don’t Stop’ and ‘Songbird’.

After the group’s success with their live album The Dance in 1997, she left the band and hasn’t toured with them since. 

Always an intriguing figure, McVie's uniquely independent attitude to global fame, ridiculous wealth, love and loss, personal privacy, song writing and music, is at the heart of her story, now told in Go Your Own Way, 80 music-packed minutes starring Catherine Alcorn (The Divine Miss Bette).

Go Your Own Way promises an insight into the inner workings, relationships and turmoil of Fleetwood Mac through the eyes of the band's ‘other singer’ in 80 music-packed minutes.

Does Catherine have something of a penchant for rock divas of the 1970s? First she played Bette Middler in her cabaret show The Divine Miss Bette and now Christine McVie in Go Your Own Way.

“As it turns out, I think I do, because they’re strong women. I really admire strong women, especially in the music industry, where it’s so male dominant. Christine’s story really intrigues me because she wasn’t the one who was in the spotlight of the band; it was Stevie Nix. Christine often gets forgotten as the songwriter who wrote most of the top hits for the band. I think it was, number 1, she didn’t really chase the spotlight, ever; she was a reserved, private person. And, number 2, physically the set-up of the band didn’t really lend to her being in the spotlight. Stevie Nix was literally in the centre of the stage, putting a lot of audience focus on her.

“I’m always interested in why people quit such big things, or decide not to be part of things any more, because as a performer who’s building her career, I couldn’t imagine getting to a stage yet where I would say, I don’t want to do this any more.

“The more I got to know her, the more respect I had for her. She’s so strong. I just find her an intriguing character.”

As a performer, what makes a show about Christine McViefeel like such a perfect fit for you?

“The way that she writes her songs. I didn’t know this before, but all of my favourite Fleetwod Mac songs were hers. Looking back now, I remember when I went to a Fleetwood Mac concert a few years ago with my family; I felt disappointed that that blonde woman wasn’t there on tour. I didn’t know at that time that the blonde woman was Christine McVie, and that six or seven years later I’d be doing a show about her for that very reason – because I loved her songs and songwriting so much.

“The majority of people think that ‘Songbird’ was an Eva Cassidy song; they diidn’t realize that Christine McVie wrote it. If you compare Christine’s version to Eva Cassidy’s, Christine’s is very matter-of-fact. It’s not verbose. She just wrote the song as it was and kind-of left it at that, whereas Eva Cassidy certainly made a really beautiful, angelic, ethereal version, but that’s not what Christine was about. She was a strong lady and quite matter-of fact, and that’s represented in her songs, but also her songs were just so good. I love them. That’s why the story and her songwriting just clicked for me as a show concept.”

All of these aspects make her quite a contrast with your other cabaret personna, Bette Midler, who was always so up front and centre.

“That’s what attracted me to it as well. Christine McVie is such a cool character; in demeanor she’s very cool and relaxed and happy to be in the background, and that’s the complete antithesis to Bette Midler. That was also attractive to me, because I find those kind of cool characters like Penny Lane in Almost Famous attractive - she was just cool, she was just around, and Christine was like that as well. I think that being able to play that kind of character, who is a little more reserved, was attractive after playing someone for so long who was so over the top.”

What led toGo Your Own Way being expanded from 60-minute cabaret into a full theatre piece?

“It was always a musical theatre piece, even when it was 60 minutes, but now Diana (Simmonds) has developed it into an 80 minute musical theatre show, and it’s a beautiful piece. It’s very warm and very insightful, and cheeky, and I can’t wait to, hopefully, tour it.

“I can’t help thinking that so many audiences around Australia would really love this show. It helps them to go back to that time in their life when they had an experience to a Fleetwood Mac song, and I think you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who, a, doesn’t know a Fleetwood Mac song or, b, doesn’t have a memory to go along with one of them. For me there’s something really special about being able to go along to a show, and enjoy it, and enjoy the story, already knowing a little bit about it, but allowing yourself to get lost in that nostalgia of your own memories. That’s why I think a lot of people would really warm to the show, and be quite surprised as well with some of the things in there, because, as I said, even though she was one of the members of one of the biggest rock groups in the history of rock n roll, she’s still somewhat unknown.”

Does the rest of the Fleetwood Mac have an obvious presence in the show?

“There is a presence. They’re not overtly dressed as the band. They’re referred to. We have five performers on stage to represent the number of the group for the time at which the story is predominantly focusing around. One character is a little more predominant than the others, but there are certainly references, although they’re not dressed as the characters at all. The characters actually come through the music.

“Issac Hayward, who musically directed the show, has really cleverly represented them, and told the story of the members of the band through the music, which is a really nice take on it. The re-arrangements which he has done are absolutely stunning, and we’ve re-arranged quite a few of the songs to tell a narrative.”

Catherine was also very keen to thank the Adelaide Cabaret Festival for its role in bringing her show to life.

“I was fortunate enough for Adelaide to commission a dream basically. The show wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t been give the chance to do it by the Adelaide Cabaret Festival team Torben Brookman and Kate Ceberano. I had an idea and they supported that vision. And they do that for so many artists. That’s why they’re so important to the ongoing cultural centre that Adelaide is, because so many artists are given the opportunity to bring their stage vision alive.”

SEASON DETAILS

Glen Street Theatre, corner Glen Street and Blackbutts Road, Belrose NSW

27 May – 1 June
, 2014

Tuesday 6.30pm, Wednesday - Saturday 8pm, Saturday 2pm and Sunday 5pm.

Q&A session with the cast on Tuesday 27 May.

Wine Appreciation Session from 4pm prior to the performance on Sunday 1 June

Ticket Prices: $70 - $30. Student Rush tickets $15.

Bookings: www.glenstreet.com.au | admin@glenstreet.com.au or 9975 1455