The first S.L.U.G. Queen to win the crown without bribing is 2001’s Queen Darcy (Du Ruz.) and she had to beat an actual slug for the title. A talented operatic singer and voice teacher, she did have the advantage of having her every movement heralded by a trumpet fanfare supplied by her husband, Eugene Symphony trumpeter Dave Bender, and two of his students, as well as being flanked by the other members of her entourage.
These days, Darcy Du Ruz may be more famous for her slime than her music, but the former slug queen is an accomplished circus/vaudeville/music performer who’s played venues from the Paris Opera to the Salzburg Mozarteum. She and Eugene Symphony/Emerald City Jazz Kings trumpeter/guitarist/composer Dave Bender put together an inventive, utterly delightful Girl Circus project for Country Fair.
Employing more than a dozen musicians (violin, saxes, trumpets, cellos, guitar, percussion, and more) plus childrens’choir, the music accompanies fire dancers, rope twirlers, whip crackers, jugglers, clowns, magicians and other acts to perform live. You can check out the remarkable variety of music (vocal, instrumental, rock, Latin beats, funk, tango, Italian, even some Philip Glass-style choral touches, cabaret) and humor that make this circus well worth hearing.