What: Klub Nacht Varieté with Miss Natasha Enquist
When: Tonight (Jan. 2), 9 p.m.
Where: The Copper Owl
Tickets: $10 at the door
After almost two years in Berlin, Victoria performer Natasha Enquist pulls off a pretty convincing German accent.
“Nozzing is certain in life,” she says with just the right amount of Zs, when asked how much longer she plans to live there.
The accordion player, singer, actor and model bought a one-way ticket to Europe, without having stepped foot on the continent before. She went there with a plan to learn about her heritage.
“It was a combination of finding my roots and having an adventure,” she said.
Enquist is back in Victoria visiting family for the holidays. And while she’s at it, she’s bringing a little German flair to our stage. Tonight (Jan. 2), she hosts a German-style variety show called Klub Nacht Varieté at the Copper Owl, inviting old friends and collaborators to join her.
“It will have that old ’30s Berlin feel,” she said.
Guest performers include percussionist Matthew Pease, comedian Dan Kahan, actor Rod Peter Jr., magician The Great Giffoni and hula-hoop dancer Laurel Collins. Enquist promises “a few other surprises” and dance party to follow.
She’ll return to Berlin Jan. 6.
So far, she said, the root-finding mission is going smashingly.
Her mother’s side is German, but lived in the Ukraine.
“I still knew that Germany would make sense for me. And Berlin has a good arts scene, a good creative culture,” she said.
She has also made a trip to Hungary, part of her father’s heritage. And she said she’s generally feeling at home in Eastern Europe.
“I went to the Czech Republic and people looked like my family there, too. Things start to feel more familiar and people start talking to you in different languages, because they think you’re that,” she said. “In Paris, they kept talking to me in Russian.”
The trip has also caused Enquist to reflect on what it means to be Canadian.
“Being Canadian, you’re made up of many things. So it feels like your identity is really confused,” she said.
She hasn’t quite come up with answers to questions about what Canadians do and what Canadians eat.
“I’m like, ‘Kind of everything. Lots of seafood,’ ” she said.
The accordion culture is a bit different there, she said, and dominated by men who play on the U-Bahn (subway system) or wander cafés.
“It’s male-dominated there,” she said. “There’s a shop there that has been helpful and they’re very intrigued by a female accordionist.”
And she’s found a welcome audience in the gay community, where she performs regular gigs.
Enquist said she’s happy to be home, but is looking forward to continued exploration in Europe.
“It feels like I’m in the centre of the universe, like things begin there and filter out. That’s exciting for me, so I’d like to try and make that work for a bit longer,” she said. “I’m on a two-year artist’s visa, so I’m just seeing how it goes.”