STUPORMODEL

A cutting-edge cabaret that strips back the glossy façade of the fashion industry and blows the thigh gap of your expectations apart. After 20 years perpetuating “the myth that prettiness determines worthiness,” Erika Heynatz delivers a provocative blend of powerhouse vocals, raw storytelling, and disarming candour as she navigates the treacherous journey from catwalk to cabaret.

This fierce feminist exploration serves as a battle cry against marketable facades and perceived expiry dates, arming audiences with ideas more dangerous than Naomi Campbell with a phone in her hand. Through reimagined classics, original compositions (including the tragic-turned-triumphant “Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels”), and behind-the-scenes industry revelations, Heynatz unflinchingly examines universal themes of desirability, visibility, rejection, self-worth, consent, and the commodification of women’s self-esteem—all with her trademark wit.

This 55-minute multi-artform performance blends song, story, poetry and movement that reveals both the absurdities and unexpected moments of genuine humanity in the high-pressure world of modelling. Erika Heynatz has built an impressive career spanning modelling, television, music, and theatre. You might recognise her as the original host of Australia’s Next Top Model, and her musical theatre credits include a breakout role as Brooke in Legally Blonde, Magenta in Rocky Horror and Lina Lamont in Singing in the Rain. Now she delivers an unforgettably honest yet wildly entertaining examination of an industry she has both thrived in and survived.