News, dear sisters and brothers … news

It’s season launch time again with other news in the wind. In fact, the wind threatened to blow away the crowd that gathered to launch Queensland Theatre Company’s Season 2009 at the State Library on Monday evening. Brisbane weather can be capricious at this time of year … storms boot up out of any direction, and blow in with a ferocity that reminds us that we really do live in the sub-tropics.

As it happened, things settled on the SL’s delightful ‘tea-cup terrace’ overlooking the Brisbane River. The arts crowd buzzed, and Minister for the Arts Rod Welford and Artistic Director Michael Gow delivered the news most … especially the artists and creatives not already booked for a gig … were waiting to hear. What would the main stage season hold? 

2009 will be Gow’s tenth season with the state theatre company, and it bids fair to be his best yet. A mix of classics and brand-new works, Australian and international, home-grown, co-produced or hosted with other Australian theatre companies, and presented in the Company’s home venue the Bille Brown Studio in Brisbane’s own West End, as well as in QPAC’s Cremorne and Playhouse venues. Then there are the state-wide and national tours. A big year all round, especially for the artists; 2009 will probably be the largest contingent of actors for many years.

Other news in the wind …. La Boite Theatre and Toowoomba’s Empire Theatres are about to anoint their own new artistic directors. Facebook tends to be the media release tool of choice these days, though undoubtedly the heritage media will get the nod in a day or so. And so we learned that David Berthold (Griffin, ATYP and formerly of STC and Queensland Theatre Company) is going to La Boite, and Lewis Jones (Circa) up the hill. Exciting times ahead for Queensland Theatre. Good luck chaps!

We’ll miss you Mr Newman

He had to wait a long time to win an Academy Award (The Color of Money 1986) a source apparently of much good-humoured banter over the years between Paul Newman and his Oscar-winner wife Joanne Woodward. But oh how he deserved one for sheer masculine presence on the screen. Not only was he ridiculously good-looking … and didn’t he age well by the way … but he was also a screen natural, charismatic before we used the word to describe the special attraction some gifted individuals have for both men and women. I had a black and white poster of ‘Paul’ on my bedroom wall … just like every other young woman of a certain age back then. It had only one patch of colour – those blue, blue eyes. Remember that one?

Cursed early on in his career by comparison with James Dean, Newman unlike the tragic Dean went on to carve his own inimitable style up there. There seemed to be nothing ever remotely tragic about the Newman public persona, despite his losing of a child. That was private, and off limits like the rest of his exemplary family life. Regular guy … good bloke.

He had a good-humoured way about him that showed on and off screen; it undoubtedly belied his utter professionalism, like his strength in the face of disappointment and sorrow. No precious artiste was Newman, just a brilliant actor who seemed always on top of his game no matter the decade of his long life. And of course he paved the way for the celebrity as humanitarian and activist that we’ve come to take for granted from so many who’ve followed.

He died this morning aged 83 after what we might call a good innings, though I guess for Newman it would be more accurate to call it a great race. Bye Paul. I hope heaven has all the fast cars and beers you deserve. We’ll miss that championship breed that you represented so well.

Time Entertainment does a nice obituary here.

Young artists at work and play

And so to Brisbane again the other night for a playreading of the three writers in this year’s YPP (Young Playwrights’ Program) run by Queensland Theatre Company. The Bille Brown studio on the edges of Brisbane’s South Bank Cultural Precinct was heaving with young’uns plus a few oldies who’d come to cheer on the writers and the actors who’d rehearsed for a day or so. The place was also full of teens currently attending the annual TRW (Theatre Residency Week) … all these acronyms are apparently very cool. This year’s lot had devised and performed the entire novel of Candide the night before! Now there’s cheek (and stamina) for you. It was a night of energy, high spirits, and no small amount of talent on display.

Queensland Theatre Company’s quiet claim to fame is its youth and education programs that run year-long and which cater for young artists, creatives and theatre-lovers. From their artist in schools programs and workshops to state and national tours, work experience opportunities, a season of plays specially devised to appeal to the almighty schools’ curriculum, plus the aforesaid TRW and YPP, there is now and always has been a determination by the state theatre company to work for and with Queensland’s young artists and creatives and their teachers. Well done, say I.

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Words, words, words …

Spent an afternoon on Brisbane’s delightful South Bank cultural precinct yesterday. It’s site until today of the annual Brisbane Writers’ Festival. The joint was jumping. Author talks, panels, coffee drinking, book browsing (and buying) and readings have been the stuff of the past 4 days. And if you think that’s boring, think again. And it was all very Brisbane … shorts and t-shirts, sandals and the kind of laid back atmosphere that is Queensland.

I was there principally to see Queensland Theatre Company second reading of Richard Jordan’s 25 Down due for production next June as winner of the 2008-09 Premier’s Drama Award. It was designed to give the writer an opportunity to hear and see a different cast of actors read his work, now in a 9 month development stage. A 15 minute Q&A afterwards gave the writer, and the Director Jon Halpin and his actors a chance to talk about the process of taking a work from page to stage.

How exciting to have so many people who still care about words.

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Oh for a muse of fire …

This post gets a lot of hits, and I puzzled over it for awhile. I then realised it’s because of the Shakespearean quote which is the title. So for all of you who have come here expecting to find more about the muse of fire, here’s some info to get you surfing on.

The quote is from the Prologue of Shakespeare’s Henry V. It is spoken by the Chorus, who wants the audience to let the actors work on their ‘imaginary forces.’ He asks the audience to put their imaginations to work, to pretend that the events of the play are happening before them … to ‘hear’ and ‘see’ and ‘feel’ things that are being spoken about. It’s Shakespeare speaking to us about the role of imagination in the Elizabethan theatre where the key ingredient was the spoken word.

And wanting a ‘muse of fire’? The Chorus is wishing to be inspired by the right kind of fiery passion to tell the story well. It’s something any actor today can relate to.

And here is the rest of my original post … I was using the quote as a shorthand way of saying ‘O I wish I had the words to tell you how I felt …’ I used pictures instead, thinking of another quote which goes ‘A picture is worth 1,000 words.’ (not Shakespeare) …

Groundling is back and refreshed and ready to go. What a splendid summer that was up there in Europe.

I’ll begin at the beginning with a picture or two that tell their own story about another beginning. Anyone who loves theatre will, I hope, relate to the images.

There are more on my Flickr set of those magical days in Greece and Turkey.

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