Cirrus@Austlit

'A rock’n’roll theatre performance celebrating the phenomenal journey and impact of Australian music icons, Warumpi Band, told from the perspective of the Butcher Brothers.

'Named after Warumpi Band’s second album, BIG NAME, NO BLANKETS this rock 'n' roll theatre performance features Warumpi hits, showcasing Luritja, Warlpiri and Gumatj / Yolngu Martha languages and culture.

'Making history as the first rock ’n ’ roll band to sing in Aboriginal languages, Warumpi Band is acclaimed for creating our Black Anthems: Jailanguru Pakurnu, My Island Home and Blackfella/Whitefella.

'Warumpi Band brought hope and strength to First Peoples and united all Australians, singing truths that echoed the realities of black and white relationships in colonised lands. They amplified black voices, stories and politics while uniting all cultures with their infectious music.

'Packed with humour, iconic songs and rock star performances, BIG NAME, NO BLANKETS is a joyful show about how music can influence massive change.'

Source: Production blurb.

'In 1840, a settler swore he found a bible printed in Edinburgh, a blue silk purse and a broken looking-glass in the remains of a Gunaikurnai camp near Ninety Mile Beach. But did he also really see the face of a ‘pale woman’ in a possum-skin cloak? Was there really a ‘white woman’ in Gunaikurnai country or were these unverified stories a cover for other activities – these are the questions Jacinta is trying to answer when she holes herself up in a country motel to put the finishing touches on her thesis. But can she solve a 150-year-old mystery in four days? And get justice for her people?

'The Black Woman of Gippsland explores colonial Victorian ‘history’ through a vital First Nations’ lens.'

Source: Melbourne Theatre Company.

'In alpine Victoria, on Gunaikurnai country, a flock of sheep are found with their throats torn open. A woman, a farmer’s daughter, is on the hunt—looking for feral dogs. Rifle at her side, she camps down, thinking she’s alone.

'But she’s not.

'From deep between the eucalypts, a dingo watches her. Heart beating through skin. Bristling with hunger and grief. Waiting for the slightest show of weakness. From Picnic at Hanging Rock to Wake in Fright, the greatest works of Australian Gothic tease a uniquely antipodean horror from the anxiety of living on stolen country.

'In a work of startling poetry, tenderness, and violence, Andrea James (Sunshine Super Girl) and AWGIE-winner Catherine Ryan ratchet this anxiety to epic proportions, in a bloody confrontation between two elemental forces, played out on contested territory.'

Source: Griffin Theatre Company.

'A young girl hits a ball against the tin wall of her family’s home with a frying pan. This is where it all began for Evonne Goolagong. Hers is a quintessentially Australian story about a girl from the bush who dared to dream, and with the unlikely support of an outback farming town, rose to become the No. 1 tennis player in the world, and a household name by the age of 19.

'Evonne Goolagong’s heartwarming story is a celebration of spirit and passion over adversity, and a tribute to a woman whose sporting prowess continues to inspire a nation, giving hope to thousands of young girls across the country. With its distinctively Australian sensibility and humour, Sunshine Super Girl asks us to consider our nation’s future and the part we can play for the next ‘Goolagong’ waiting in the wings.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'From the heart of Cairns Yidinji people comes the inspiring story of a courageous woman who set out to change the world! From the humble shores of the Aboriginal mission of Yarrabah, home to the Yidinji people in North Queensland all the way to the World Stage – BUKAL is the imagining of social justice warrior, traditional owner, elder, mother and Internationally recognised academic Henrietta Marrie’s extraordinary life realised on stage. As we travel from the Australian rainforest to Geneva and journey with an Australian woman who will stop at nothing to uncover injustice and return that which was stolen to its rightful place. Just like the spirit name that her grandfather spoke over the sacred fire, Bukal (black lawyer vine), she finds ways around the obstacles blocking her path.'

Source: JUTE Theatre Company.

'1938. Europe burns. Young Jewish couple Hans and Alice Herskovics mount a dangerous escape from Nazi-occupied Vienna.

'Half a world away, after a lifetime advocating for the rights of his own people, Yorta Yorta leader William Cooper leads a deputation to the front door of Melbourne's German Consulate. His message - the persecution of the Jewish people must stop.

'Nearly eighty years later, two playwrights come together on page and stage to explore the legacy of their ancestors in a unique cross-cultural collaboration.

'What makes a hero?

Who can pull off the best 80's flashback?

Whose dog is smartest?

Whose oppression largest?

'From Austria to Australia, from a Deb Ball in Benalla to a Brighton Bat Mitzvah, Bright World is a genre-bending trip into the heart of our history-making.' (Production summary)

'Six women leave the city, and return to country for a night, to come to terms with their present, their past, and their connections to each other. Originally commissioned by Belvoir in 2010, and inspired by the iconic television mini-series Women of the Sun, Andrea James set out to answer the question 'Who is our current Woman of the Sun and what are her major concerns?' The result pays tribute to the Aboriginal women in our communities who are shining brighter than the sun, fighting against incredible odds to nurture and represent family, community and country.'

Source: National Play Festival 2013 (www.pwa.org.au).

'Coranderrk: We will show the country embodies the authority of the written word with oral history and allows us to reconsider the 19th century Victorian frontier.'

'Deriving from the highly popular verbatim-theatre, professional actors bring to life those who gave evidence before the 1881 Coranderrk Inquiry, rescuing Aboriginal men, women and children from dusty archives and giving them voice. They include the renowned Wurundjeri leader, William Barak.'

'As well as talented farmers, the Kulin were also skilled communicators who engaged in adroit lobbying of government and drew in vocal supporters.'

'By including bios of the witnesses and a contextual history, Nanni and James have captured the drama of their heartfelt petitioning the colonial government, along with their allies — and the Aboriginal Protection Board, and the local pastoralists, who opposed them.' (Source: AIATIS website)

'Written by a new quintet of outstanding Melbourne writers - Andrea James, Hoa Pham, Danny Katz, Kit Lazaroo and Aidan Fennessy - these specially commissioned short works form a single theatrical journey through the decades, over the fences, under the awnings and into the collective psyche of our city.'

The five works on places in Melbourne are 'Birrarung' by Andrea James; 'Maribyrnong' by Hoa Pham; 'Caulfield' by Danny Katz; 'Presto' by Kit Lazaroo; 'Mentone' by Aidan Fennessy.

Source: White Whale Theatre website, www.whitewhaletheatre.com (Sighted: 19/05/2009)