'Coranderrk is about what might have been. At a Victorian Parliamentary Inquiry in 1881, the men and women of the Coranderrk Aboriginal Reserve went head-to-head with the Aboriginal Protection Board. Their goal was both simple and revolutionary: to be allowed to continue the brilliant experiment in self-determination they had pioneered for themselves on the scrap of country left to them. Coranderrk recreates the Inquiry. This is both great theatre and great history. It revives the voices of all those, black and white, who fought for a better pact between the country’s oldest and newest inhabitants. This special production pays tribute to the resilience and adaptability of a people who rose to the challenge despite the odds, appropriating the power of the written word to make their own voices ring loud and clear.
'Coranderrk is a collaboration between leading Indigenous and non-Indigenous artists, researchers, education experts and community members. The production aims to encourage a shared understanding of the past between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people.'
Source: https://ilbijerri.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Coranderrk_Teachers-Resource_2017-Tour.pdf
A co-production by Ilbijerri theatre Company & Belvoir
Performed at the Belvoir, Surry Hills from December 7 2013 to January 2014.
Performed at Coranderrk 21 February 2016
Cast: Kate Beckett, Jack Charles, Mathew Cooper, Kelton Pell, Melodie Reynolds-Diarra, and Bjorn Stewart.
Director: Isaac Drandic.
Set & Costume Designers: Ruby Langton-Batty & Ralph Myers.
Lighting Designer: Damien Cooper.
Composer & Sound Designer: Ben Grant.
Audio Visual Designer: Peter Worland.
Stage Manager: Chantelle Foster.
Assistant Stage Manager: Grace Nye-Butler.
'For actor Jack Charles, playing 19th century Indigenous leader William Barak, is literally in his blood...'
'The 14 shows of the Canberra Theatre Centre 2017 Collected Works season, which was announced on Monday, October 17, will be bookended by two musicals. ...'
'For actor Jack Charles, playing 19th century Indigenous leader William Barak, is literally in his blood...'
'The 14 shows of the Canberra Theatre Centre 2017 Collected Works season, which was announced on Monday, October 17, will be bookended by two musicals. ...'