Inside look at the lives of five professional Melbourne impersonators
Their likenesses to celebrities such as Marilyn Monroe and Kim Jong-un have allowed these five Melburnians to forge careers as impersonators, with some spending the last 20 years fine-tuning their acts.
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They say you should walk a mile in someone else’s shoes, but for these five impersonators, it’s become a way of life.
Howard X, Mark and Joanne Caligiuri, Ben Price and Lucy Holmes are all impersonators, and for years have transformed into their respective characters by mimicking gestures, mannerisms and speech, plus a good dose of physical similarity.
Howard X impersonates Kim Jong-un, married couple Mark and Joanne pay tribute to Elvis and Marilyn Monroe, Ben plays Arnold Schwarzenegger and Lucy becomes Australia’s golden girl Kylie Minogue.
Some have spent almost 20 years fine tuning their acts, which includes taking more than two hours to prepare costumes, props, hair and makeup.
The connection these artists have to their characters is almost spousal and at times they struggle to keep a separate identity.
Even from a distance, fans notice them in the street, pull out their phones and take photos. Impersonation has allowed them to tour internationally, with loyal global audiences, but their uncanny likenesses have led to some unusual situations, including the attention of media packs and one even being chased by fans in Hong Kong.
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, these five Australians are paying homage in bucket loads.
Ben Price: Arnold Schwarzenegger
When Ben Price says Arnold Schwarzenegger’s iconic line: “Hasta la vista, baby”, fans do a double take.
Discovering his talent for impersonating voices at the age of 10, Ben used his voices to entertain classmates and pull pranks. Impersonation is now his full-time gig that has allowed him to travel the world doing a repertoire of more than 200 character voices.
At 18, he had perfected the voice of his boyhood hero Schwarzenegger and began mimicking him, with Arnie’s exact sound and in full costume.
“I love making people laugh, it’s the best thing. When I’m performing at an event it’s incredible to see the whole room fill with laughter,” he says.
Ben says the most challenging aspect of impersonation is the preparation of costumes and other props.
“I’ve had gigs where I’ve had to do full prosthetics as Donald Trump and that took four hours,” he says.
But there’s nothing better than the “buzz” he gets on stage at events.
“When you see a whole routine come together and the audience gives you the confidence to do so, it’s so much fun.
“I’m really grateful to be making a living out of this. I’ve travelled the world and I was a grand finalist on Australia’s Got Talent in 2011.
“20 years ago I travelled to Austria as Arnie. The real Arnie was going to charge $1m, so they chose me.
“I got to ride a Harley into the show with dry ice filling the room and Terminator theme music played in the background, it was incredible.”
benpricecomedy.com
Mark and Joanne Caligiuri: Elvis Presley and Marilyn Monroe
Husband and wife duo Mark and Joanne Caligiuri’s onstage chemistry leaves fans “all shook up”.
Mark started his Elvis tribute show in 1996, then met Joanne who also has a musical background, at one of his shows almost a decade later.
Joanne opens Mark’s tribute show to the king of rock ‘n’ roll dressed as a dazzling Marilyn Monroe. But it’s their authentic performance as country music’s favourite couple Johnny Cash and June Carter that wows audiences.
“After the show, our fans tell us that they can really sense how in love we are with each other,” Mark says.
“Audiences can really feel the same love that Johnny and June had for each other.”
Joanne says: “We love the joy that we bring to people’s lives and we tap into music that they’ve grown up with, it’s really special.
“We love getting dressed up, talking to people, we love every aspect of our shows,” she says.
Joanne says Mark was smitten by her after their first encounter in 2005. “I’ve always loved Marilyn and would dress up like her as I had a vintage look. Mark even wrote a song about me called The Day I Met Marilyn.
“It was clear we connected from the moment we met.”
The duo say they are thankful for all of their success and opportunities as performers.
“Mark and I are very connected to our audiences and we thank them for all of their support.
“We really appreciate people that buy tickets to come and see us, some of them have become our lifelong friends.”
heygetrhythm.com
Lucy Holmes: Kylie Minogue
For more than 20 years Lucy Holmes has not been able to get Kylie out of her head.
She has performed her 100 per cent Kylie show in more than 20 countries and has even been endorsed by the real Kylie.
“I was doing a lot of backing vocal work for artists including Delta (Goodrem) and Guy (Sebastian) … I used to do a lot of Kylie songs and an agent saw me performing and loved it.
“The agent said I looked like Kylie and sounded like her and suggested I do a show and since then it’s turned into a huge stage show that has toured the world.
“I love Kylie because she is the quintessential girl next door that has gone and become a superstar. She’s never forgotten her roots and she’s so kind.”
Lucy, who also works full time as a performer and radio host on 89.9 Light FM, says she is passionate about getting every detail of her performance right.
“It’s almost like you get to live their life in a quasi-way without fame. You get to have this experience where you step on stage with the most extraordinary costumes. It’s a euphoric feeling. It’s a joy to be on stage and pretend to be someone who is so loved.”
Lucy has also been “mobbed” by fans and media packs that have mistaken her for the real Kylie.
“At one point we were getting chased down the street with people shouting ‘Kylie’ in Hong Kong, it was surreal. I have so many loyal fans and they’ve watched me grow over the years. I’m so thankful for their support.”
100percentkylie.com
Howard Lee (known as Howard X): Kim Jong-un
When Howard X goes out in public dressed in a black suit, people turn and stare. His likeness to North Korea’s Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un has helped shape his professional career for a decade.
“When Kim Jong-il died in 2011, I saw his son Kim Jong-un on the news and noticed I looked like him,” he says.
“But it wasn’t until 2013, when I took a few photos and got the haircut. I made a Facebook page and two weeks later went to Israel to shoot a commercial for (fast food chain) Burgeranch.”
Howard, who was born in Hong Kong and migrated to Australia as a child in the 1990s, says the commercial had opened the door to opportunities locally and abroad. “It was totally surreal and it’s changed my life for the better. It’s improved my financial status and even my love life. I’ve been able to use his image and make fun of North Koreans and all of the other dictators.”
Just like the real Kim, Howard is no stranger to controversy.
He recalls attending the South Korea Winter Olympics in 2018 dressed as the North Korean leader accompanied by a Trump impersonator.
“The agents who were working for North Korea started pushing me around and kept kicking me in the shins in front of the cameras,” he says.
But Howard also draws attention to humanitarian issues, including rescuing Volodymyr Zelensky impersonator Umid Isabaev out of war-ravaged Ukraine last year. He says he enlisted the help of a Putin impersonator, Steve Poland, who had contacts within the Ukrainian resistance, and found someone to go into Kyiv and rescue Isabaev.
Howard says when he becomes Kim Jong-un, he gets a real sense of his character.
“You see what it’s like to have all of this power and to be a ruthless arsehole. It’s the role I was born to play.”
facebook.com/KimJongUnLookAlike
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