Disco Cuttlefish

Stobie the Disco Cuttlefish was the mascot of the 2014 Adelaide Fringe Festival in South Australia. Its design was inspired by the cephalopod species Sepia apama, the Giant Australian Cuttlefish. Stobie was a 13 metre long mechanised parade float which featured blinking eyes, waving tentacles and an elaborate sound, light and dance show. It made appearances each Saturday night during the festival, accompanied by a professional dance troupe which performed a set routine. This was followed by an original dance called 'The Cuttlefish' during which crowd participation was invited. Stobie also played a pre-recorded soundtrack of disco hits including a megamix of Stayin' Alive, Billie Jean, You Should be Dancing and Le Freak. The opening set routine was performed to the theme-song from the 1980 dance movie, Fame.

Adelaide Fringe director Greg Clarke claimed responsibility for suggesting the adoption of a giant Australian cuttlefish as a festival mascot. He said that the festival team "wanted to create a creature unique to South Australia and were inspired by the uniqueness and beauty of the giant cuttlefish that inhabits the gulf waters of South Australia." The idea was first announced with the release of the event program in November 2013.

The concept was realised by a team of South Australian artists and technicians accredited as follows:

A ute provided the scaffold around which the cuttlefish was constructed. Sound and lighting systems were placed in the tray of the vehicle. The finished cuttlefish changed colour, featured blinking eyes and emitted smoke as a proxy for ink.

The Disco Cuttlefish was sponsored by SA Power Networks. Adelaide Fringe Festival's 2014 Principal Partner was BankSA, and its government partners were ArtsSA, the South Australian Tourism Commission and the Adelaide City Council.

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