My friend and colleague Patrick Lenton and the Sexy Tales Comedy Collective is looking for a delightfully talented actor to adventure to Adelaide with them. I wouldn’t recommend it, unless I thought you might have a very fun and rewarding experience. more…
Underbelly Arts has nothing to do with the TV show. It won’t confront you with guns or nudity – frankly, it’s too cold. It’s an arts festival. An arts festival which dares to ask two key questions: more…
It’s been a pretty interesting year… and playwrights and productions have certainly kept me busy. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining. I feel really lucky. honoured to be working with and for Australia’s best emerging playwrights. I am also lucky to have a home at Queen Street Studio, where development and experimentation is valued. It’s been a back to back year, and every now and then, I stop and look around. To see what’s happening.
Sometimes, I poke my head up from my email, or I sit in my backyard, rooibos in hand, looking at the garden. In one of the beds are the tulip bulbs Vanessa Bates gave me on the opening night of Stories from the 428 back in March… with the heartfelt message: “you are growing us.” This spring (fringe time) Bates’ tulips had burst open into yellow and red striped flowers and their emergence had kept me going during some tricky times… I guess, reminding me it’s all about growing.
So knee-deep in Spankers (Brand Spanking New)… and I see on a cursory glance on Facebook some congratulations flying around – and I am baffled, and happy and excited: three of the Off The Shelfers have been nominated for Awards as a part of the Sydney Fringe… And I couldn’t be more thrilled for them…
Sexy Tales of Paleontology by Patrick Lenton, directed by Anne Maree Magi
The Hideous Demise of Detective Slate by Alli Sebastian Wolf, directed by Jane Grimley
Zetland by Jasper Marlow, directed by Andrew Johnston
… and if that wasn’t exciting enough- new Australian works by emerging writers have been acknowledged in the Sydney Airport Excellence in Theatre Award, in the programming of The Boiler Room… I am thrilled! Mainly because the message it sends is clear- Australian works are good, in fact, they are exciting! more…
Remounting a show is a huge gamble- the hope that people who missed it last time are in town and can see it, the hope that those who saw the original show feel such a fondness for the show they want to see a replay (like that much loved VHS tape from my childhood) or are curious to see how it has changed. It’s a gamble that the writers, the directors and actors want to see it again, want to work on it again- want to plunge their foot in the same river twice… and the risk feels huge.
Luckily for Stories from the 428, a collection of the writers, directors and actors were available, keen and generous enough to lend their time and talent- and with the help of Leslie, Naomi, Guy and Kendall at ACTT the rehearsals were sorted out- and before long everyone was back ready to jump on board and into the Fringe Festival. more…
Earlier this year, a group of playwrights, directors, crew and actors came together to create a project inspired by Sydney’s transport system. A suite of plays were presented at Sidetrack theatre- a different suite each week for two weeks celebrating the bizarre, fantastical, romantic, infuriating Sydney Commuter experience. With a total of nearly 100 artists on board- nearly 1500 people over 10 performances enjoyed the fruits of their labours. Six months later, most of the directors and an ensemble cast have come together with a selection of the scenes from both weeks, culminating in a new show- full of surprises! If you missed it- this is your chance! more…
Sunday was a big day. Not just any Sunday- but a pretty special Sunday- the day for industry and peers to come and offer their support, thoughts, feedback to the four new works which have been in development through Queen Street Studio’s Script development hothouse “Off the Shelf”. more…
It’s an exciting time for Sydney’s independent artists.
An exciting time for those who are brave enough to throw themselves into the big, deep unknown.
It’s an exciting time for those teams who have been in rehearsal the last 4 weeks, refining and developing their scripts for the first taste of the Sydney Fringe… in the Off the Shelf showing this weekend… more…
I love new work.
I love spotting talent.
Like a botanist naming the trees he walks by. Like a child pointing at a train and saying “train”. I spot talent and point at it and say “talent.” Then by naming it… by pointing it out, I am compelled to share it. I love sharing talent. It’s thrilling.
I love finding talent. I unashamedly and publicly call it “treasure hunting”… (I have also been called the new work “truffle pig”- nosing out the good stuff from the earth… I love it.) I love when a new script lands in my inbox- with a note from a writer (usually littered with disclaimers and a few “don’t worry if you are too busy” lines…) it is a thrill- I just don’t know what I am going to find- the next Vanessa Bates? The Next Joanna Murray-Smith? The next Andrew Bovell? The next Caleb Lewis? It’s exciting and an honour to receive a script. I love being warmed by a story in play form, and the heat of my laptop and a cup of tea (I have been indulging in alot of Rooibos of late- too much some could say)… the three warm makers in which I delight. more…
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It’s been a week since week 2 of Stories from the 428 closed- and I thought it would be nice/handy or interesting to write a little reflection on Week 2- and perhaps on the whole reflection of the project. I am in the process of de-briefing with all the directors about the project (and the process) – and this is always an important part of everything I do- it helps steer my projects, my design, my plan and focuses my passion for new work. more…
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For some, summer is a time for squeaky sand between the toes, stinging sunburn and relaxing in a resort… for me – the summer of 09/10 will forever be remembered as the summer I spent talking about buses. In a three week period I have been meeting and greeting playwrights and directors who have expressed interest in a project I am heading called “Stories from the 428″. more…