spring & explorations 2012

While I have been away feasting on theatre at the 9th Women Playwrights International Conference in Stockholm and the Helsinki Theatre Festival in Finland, La Mama too has been on the move.

Helen Lucas’ Sarajevo Suite and Donna Jackson’s The Baby Show have toured extensively in regional Victoria and metropolitan Melbourne, and Ben Grant’s The Shrink and Swell of Knots had an extended season at The Substation in Newport. We are very excited about our growing relationship with The Substation and look forward to continuing it into the future.

Creative exploration is at the heart of all works produced and presented at La Mama, yet this is particularly true of our annual EXPLORATIONS season. EXPLORATIONS is a unique series of three-night seasons in which artists are supported to challenge boundaries, experiment with process and explore new ideas. Our season this year breaks all records with almost 30 individual events, so do come and taste as many of our diverse offerings as you can.

Liz Jones, C.E.O. & Artistic Director

And on behalf of Pippa Bainbridge (Company Manager & Creative Producer), Ellen Rijs (Administration Coordinator), Nedd Jones (Communications Coordinator), Lisa Höbartner & Rebecca Etchell (House Managers), Maureen Hartley (La Mama Learning Producer), Mary Helen Sassman (La Mama Community Producer), Caitlin Dullard (La Mama Mobile Producer), Fiona Wiseman (Preservation Coordinator), Ella Holmes (La Mama for Kids Curator), Annabel Warmington (La Mama Musica Curator), Matt Hetherington (La Mama Poetica Curator), Graham Downey (Script Appraiser), Laura Smith (Explorations Production Manager) and the Committee of Management: Sue Broadway, Dur-é Dara, Mark Rubbo, Caroline Lee, Tim Stitz, Rhonda Day and Liz Jones.

SPring & explorations 2012Newsletter 123

My cunt full of ashes (This mouth is not dead)It’s About Kissing

Point of DepartureThe Award

Opera for a small mammalA Case for Melancholia

The Long PigsSomewhere City

The Book of Revelations

Death of a ComedianNOA

Story VesselPlayreadings

La Mama PoeticaLa Mama Musica

La Mama AesotericaMelbourne Writers Theatre

Ticket Information

Cover Image: Matthew ChuangCourtesy: We Were Almost Entirely Happy

Explorations Logo: Lloyd Jones

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333537383940414244

Disturbing the PieceTrailersMy Pet, My LoveThe Restoration of Adelaide RistoriOrphanage of AnimalsPendulumTehranNotoriousThe Brady BunchGravir QuiverTooThe Great GameMyth, Fabric + the Outline of PuppetsLe Petite Prince??No One Likes MeWe Were Almost Entirely HappyA Story About A DressDeath At Intervals

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10111213141516171819202122

October 16, 17, 18

“Hey I know, I’ll write for you and you write for me.” So we have. And here it is.

Charlie says: “I don’t want to give anything away. I

want people to be surprised and shocked as the narrative unfolds”

Glynis says: “My interest is in something about fractures

and bonds. Compression and tension.”

Seven monologues, a minister, a basketball hoop and a shot of pethidine.

Written by Charlie Laidlaw and Glynis Angell

Performed by Charlie Laidlaw, Glynis Angell

and others

Tue, Wed, Thu 7.30pmLa Mama Theatre

Disturbing the Piece

5.

October 19, 20, 21

Two studies made from unlikely materials:

Fifty-nine scenic fragments sampled from one nineteenth century English translation, in two versions, of Ibsen’s Pillars of Society

Two English translations, made by three translators and published five years apart,

of Derrida’s Signature Event Context

Made by Russell Walsh, with Greg Brown,

Paul Buckley, Andrew Kelly and Simon Wilton

Fri, Sat, Sun 7.30pmLa Mama Theatre

Trailers

October 22, 23, 24

This is one of my favourites

Favourite song?Favourite memory…

Written and performed by Michelle France and Robert Gaetano

Mon, Tue, Wed 7.30pmLa Mama Theatre

my pet, my love

7.7.

October 25, 26, 27

In 1875, Adelaide Ristori’s five month tour of the Australian colonies, had a significant

impact on Australian theatre and culture.

Like a fresco that has been forgotten and painted over, when we endeavour to restore it, what do we uncover about the great Diva

and more importantly… ourselves?

Created by Carmelina Di Guglielmo with Laurence Strangio

Image and costume by

Tia Evans

Thu, Fri, Sat 7.30pmLa Mama Theatre

The Restoration of Adelaide Ristori

October 28, 29, 30

The characters in Orphanage of the Animals are childhoods, childhoods put out with the curbside recycling. They are orphans in their own homes. Wolf eats teddies, cows, dogs and little children.

Crow knows the world’s fucked. Nikayla uses her tiger silk nipples to cadge ciggies. Dog bitey

biteys hisself worthless. Survivors at any cost, the Orphans work the audience for love and attention. It’s a very, very black comedy.

Written and performed by Karen Corbett

Directed by Catherine Samsury

Producer (and furry hat): Kerry Davies

Supported by Eagles Nest Theatre

Sun, Mon, Tue 7.30pmLa Mama Theatre

Orphanage of the Animals

9.

October 31, November 1, 2

Wednesday is 16 when time stops forever. Wednesday is 30 and haunted.

She must try to forgive herself the unforgivable, but will Cuckoo cut

his puppet strings?

Written by Meg Courtney

Dramaturgy and direction by Petra Kalive

Performed by Kate Gregory and Ian Rooney

Wed, Thu, Fri 7.30pmLa Mama Theatre

Pendulum

tehranNovember 3, 4, 5

Based on the daily experience of a crow flying above a city full of conflict and observing people’s

lives below. Tehran is a collection of vignettes featuring shadow puppetry and live music.

The work combines dark humour and fantasy to offset the bitterness of a reality affected by

religion, politics and the internet.

Devised by Elnaz Sheshgelani

Directorial assistance from Pippa Bainbridge and Lloyd Jones

Music by Gelareh Abdollahpour

Sat, Sun, Mon 7.30pmLa Mama Theatre

11.

November 6, 7, 8

Heralded as the world’s most desired ‘freaks’ at the turn of the 19th century,

conjoined twins Rosa and Josepha Blažek lived and died in a world of extremes.

Notorious investigates the lives and deaths of these infamous women marred by scandal,

intrigue and the rise and fall of celebrity.

Never alone.Not for a single moment.

Created and performed by Polly Sara and Ellen Rijs

Tue, Wed, Thu 7.30pmLa Mama Theatre

notorious

November 7, 8, 9

The Brady Bunch is a dynamic, living story following three generations of a

rural Koori family as they face funerals, conflict, violence, isolation, exclusion,

homelessness, discrimination, terminal illness, alcoholism, drug abuse, home

invasions, road vehicle accidents, murder and attempted suicide.

Written by Richard J Frankland

Wed, Thu, Fri 7.30pm

La Mama Courthouse

The brady bunch

13.

November 9, 10, 11

I. Gravir translates from the French to that of “to climb” / “to ascend”; with the connotation of struggling upwards.

II. Gravir can be an attempt to investigate the ramifications of the quest(ion): “what is an anything project?”.

III. Gravir itself poses as an anything project.

IV. Gravir is a work in 357 movements. Here are the 357 movements.

Written and directed by Kevin CK Lo for four players

Fri, Sat, Sun 7.30pmLa Mama Theatre

Gravir

November 10, 11, 12

Deep underground, five scientists inhabit a secret laboratory, their purpose to protect wild

and threatened species of the Vegetable Kingdom. A messenger appears to warn them that their work is being leaked into the wrong

hands with dire consequences. Intricate, outlandish, whimsical, desperate, Quiver travels a dark maze of will-o’-the-wisps.

Written byKit Lazaroo

Direction and dramaturgy byJane Woollard

Performed byFanny Hanusin, Tom Considine, Jane Bayly

Sat, Sun, Mon 7.30pmLa Mama Courthouse

quiver

15.

November 12, 13, 14

Too, a short sound work for theatre.

Financial currents course the globe—the globe spins on its calculable axis. Inside the thrum: counterpoint of the earth’s yield and

withholding, and the age-old, familiar tasks that follow. Too wonders about the

paradoxically hectic standstill of repetition, and the silence that swirls at the centre of

the dream. There is a market for everything; there may be no words.

Written by Cynthia Troup

Performed by Carolyn Connors

Composition and sound design by Ben Byrne

Mon, Tue, Wed 7.30pmLa Mama Theatre

Too

The Great GameNovember 13, 14, 15

A new work by Melbourne Fringe Festival Award winners Bernard Caleo,

Charlie Laidlaw and Katherine Connolly.

Charles Darwin meets the Pussycat Dolls in Wuthering Heights and together they set out

for the battle of Khartoum.

Written by Katherine Connolly

Directed by Rosina Gannon

Devised and performed by Katherine Connolly, Bernard Caleo

and Charlie Laidlaw

Tue, Wed, Thu 7.30pmLa Mama Courthouse

17.

November 15, 16, 17

Many of the stories that we were taught as children began with ‘once upon a time’.

Even though these stories have been passed down through generations, growing up, these

stories lose their beginnings, their simplicity and no longer apply to an adult world.

Should they be forgotten?

This is an exploration of light, fabric, puppetry, the origins of ancient myth and its present day

application.

Created and performed by Tanya Harrowell, Pippa Bainbridge,

Pheonix Bade, Shae Nechwatal and Shae Remy

Thu 8.30pm, Fri 6.30pm, Sat 8.30pm La Mama Theatre

Myth, Fabric + the Outline of Puppets

November 15, 16, 17

A woman tries to meet Le Petit Prince from her favorite novel but instead she meets

a small old man from the streets of Osaka!Travelling planets together what she found was...

Performed in Rakugo style (traditional Japanese comic storytelling) with

ventriloquism, puppets and bamboo art.

This is a comic fantasy for older childrenand adults who are still children at heart.

“Prepare to be enchanted!...mesmerized by her genuine excitement and the magic

of storytelling and creation.” - Theatre Press, Melbourne 2012

Created and performed by Showko Shoufukutei

Thu 6.30pm, Fri 8.30pm, Sat 6.30pm La Mama Theatre

le petit prince??

19.

November 16, 17, 18

An exploration of being liked and not being liked, by people, school friends, friends, colleagues, family and society.

This is a snap shot autobiographical work of growing up from childhood, teenage

years to adulthood, trying to find where one fits in and belongs.

This exploration tackles bullying, stigma from early childhood

and the impact it has had on me.

Devised byDarren Vizer

Fri, Sat, Sun 7.30pmLa Mama Courthouse

No One Likes Me

November 18, 19 ,20

My lover lies under the linden-tree kissing Tomorrow with his mouth that

was all mine.This is the beginning of my life, or the end. Elizabeth Smart and

George Barker, two poets, two fictional accounts, one real love affair.

Adapted from By Grand Central Station and The Dead Seagull

Created by Smiljana Glisovic and Caitlin Dullard

with Olivia Wilson

Image by Matthew Chuang

Sun 6.30pm, Mon 8.30pm, Tue 6.30pmLa Mama Theatre

We were almost entirely happy

21.

November 18, 19, 20

Mae is a writer with severe writer’s block. She has forgotten all of the words she knew,

but somehow through this confusion, numbers have kept her sane.

One day she sees a beautiful woman whom she decides must be her muse and so she

embarks upon a journey to reclaim her words, love and happiness.

Written and performed by Verity Charlton

Directed by Alice Bishop

Sun 8.30pm, Mon 6.30pm, Tue 8.30pmLa Mama Theatre

a story about a dress

November 19, 20, 21

A country celebrates the miracle that death has been vanquished until the grim realisation

that death no longer provides a merciful end to suffering. Has death taken a holiday or a permanent vacation? Puppetry elevates the

magic realism of José Saramago’s vision and explores a world not unlike our own.

Performed bySusan Bamford-Caleo, Colleen Burke, Dani

Cresp, Andi Horvath and Gonzalo Varela

Music byRose Turtle Ertler and Robert Stephens

Etching, direction and design by Colleen Burke

Mon, Tue, Wed 7.30pmLa Mama Courthouse

Death at Intervals

23.

November 21, 22, 23

I should have thought about it sooner, gone through it before. Planned it.

My fingers digging into his flesh, searching for the wound...

A public and personal revelation of need through language and through the body.

Created by Nicola Gunn and Laurence Strangio

Inspired by the writing of Hélène Cixous

Wed, Thu, Fri 7.30pmLa Mama Theatre

my cunt full of ashes(this mouth is not dead)

November 22, 23, 24

“It was good to see you today on Skype. We made Playdough and cut out stars

and numbers and lots more stuff.”

An unexperiment about not creating real theatre.

Devised and performed by Elisabeth Höbartner and special guests

Thu, Fri, Sat 7.30pmLa Mama Courthouse

It's about kissing...

25.

November 24, 25, 26

All is not well at Greenaway Undertakers. Repossessions! Desperate cost-cutting in a

dog-eat-dog marketplace! To make matters worse, Boris, that visionary

undertaker, has been unsettling clients with his raptures. Worse still, today’s client has her own baggage and will show no mercy – even

to an inspired undertaker.

Written and directed by Peter Murphy

Performed by Adam Cass, Jo-Anne Armstrong,

Peter Murphy, Germaine Wattis and Howard Wilkinson

Sat 8.30pm, Sun 6.30pm, Mon 8.30pmLa Mama Theatre

point of departure

November 24, 25, 26

Boyd is an ex-crim who opted for happiness via family life. When his wife leaves with the

kids, it looks like the old spectre of depression might overtake him again.

He changes tack and harnesses the violence in his neighbour, Kim, to rob clubs full-time.

A new woman, a jet setting lifestyle and a fresh liberal philosophy keep him one step

ahead of the emotions that stalk him.

Written by Mic Smith

Performed by Kevin Summers and others

Sat 6.30pm, Sun 8.30pm, Mon 6.30pmLa Mama Theatre

the award o

27.

November 27, 28, 29

Opera for a small mammal explores the artist’s position in society, from a rigorous

and singular point of view, to create a resonant landscape of performance.

Written by Margaret Cameron in creative development

with Jethro Woodward and David Young

Supported by R.E. Ross Trust Playwrights’

Script Development Award

In association with Chamber Made Opera &

Bell Shakespeare Mind’s Eye

Image by Craig Rawlings

Tue, Wed, Thu 7.30pmLa Mama Theatre

o pera for asmall mammal

November 30, December 1, 2

The populist idea that a state of melancholia be regarded as a

psychological illnesss is challenged.

Any significant deviations from the norm (a questionable construct) has led to an endemic where practitioners opt to treat

such behaviours as depression.

Given humanity’s obsession to self destruct, it is reasonable to be emotionally

disturbed by this. Being in a state of melancholia - precipitated by

conscience - is hardly an illness.

Directed and designed byLloyd Jones in collaboration with

an ensemble of 25 performers

Melencolia 1 engraving by Albrecht Dürer

Fri, Sat, Sun 7.30pmLa Mama Theatre

A CASE FOR MELANCHOLiaCreated for those who love the unexpected

29.

December 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9

You are asleep in the night of the long pigs.

Childhood dreams are slaughtered by adult nightmares.

Terrorists are eaten by cannibals, racists a mere entrée and clowns masquerade

as the maître de and chef.

The waiter wants to serve your nose as dessert. She has already eaten hers.

It’s a very dark night. You wake up laughing to discover everything you hate is true.

Devised and performed by Clare Bartholomew, Derek Ives

and Nicci Wilkes

Tue - Sun 7.30pmLa Mama Theatre

The long pigs

December 17, 18, 19

Citizens of Somewhere City are vanishing. What is responsible for these disappearances? A fable about love at the end of the world. Somewhere

City is devised and performed by members of Fusion Theatre, a company of performers of

different abilities based in Dandenong.

Directed by Tamara Searle

Assistant director and sound design byHelen Rekkor

Film by Ruth PerrySet design by Bridget NathanCostume by Larissa CardwellSupport worker: Nat Anguita

Mon 7pmTue 12pm & 7pm

Wed 12pm & 7pm

La Mama Courthouse

somewhere city

31.

December 20, 21, 22

It is the Last Days. A woman sits on top of a mountain, waiting. In the daytime she tries

to stay out of the sun. In the night time, she sings to the stars. She didn’t pack enough

lunch. The end is nigh... or is it?

Created and performed by Alison Richards

Music by Faye BendrupsDesign by Peri Jenkins

Digital creative associate: Christy DenaPuppetry consultant: Nancy BlackLighting consultant: Phil Lethlean

Graphic design by Max ThompsonProduction management: Canada White

Thu, Fri, Sat 7.30pmLa Mama Courthouse

The Book of Revelations

33.

death of a comedianNovember 28 - December 9

It’s the wild frontier of the green room at a comedy venue. Here it’s a game of survival: kill or be killed.

Enter into the room a battered survivor of eighties Oz comedy. He wants to take on the audiences again.

Has he got what it takes to stay in the game this time?

Written by Fred Rowan

Directed by Bruce Langdon

Performed byKevin Summers, Linden Compassi, Jeremy Kewley and Karla Silvey

Wed, Sun 6.30pm, Thu, Fri, Sat 7.30pm La Mama Courthouse

35.

NOADecember 12 - December 22

An expert in survival, Noa has built a sustainable ‘ark’ to protect him and his sister from impending disaster. Inspired by the biblical story of Noah’s Ark, this stirring new

work re-examines questions of survival, belief and the importance of endings.

Written and directed by Samara Hersch

Devised and performed by Karen Sibbing and Joshua Ferenbach

Sound design by Marco Cher-Gibbard

Dramaturgy by David Woods

Wed, Sun 6.30pm, Thu, Fri, Sat 7.30pm La Mama Theatre

37.

December 14 - December 16

Melbourne Playback Theatre has been a theatrical vessel for the lived stories of Victorians for 31 years. This highly skilled mobile troupe uses the ritual of storytelling, the inspiration of improvisation and the

alchemy of theatre to carry both the universal and the personal. This show offers theatre-lovers the chance to take a memorable ride in the ocean of stories that exist within the audience itself.

Ensemble: Ian David, Danny Diesendorf, Rachael Dyson-McGregor, Andrew Gray,

Petra Kalive, Allen Laverty, Mike McEvoy, Diana Nguyen, Michelle Nussey, Alexandra Sangster, Tim Stitz and Emily Taylor

Musicians: Ernie Gruner, Karen Berger

Lighting operator: Alan Davies

Company manager: Sherridan Green

Running time: 90 minutes Fri, Sat, Sun 7.30pm

La Mama Courthouse

Story vessel

PLAYREADINGS

Written and directed by David Blackmann2pm, December 8 at La Mama Courthouse

29 Shakespearean sonnets, performed by a Man and a Woman, are divided into four sections that illuminate the couple’s past love, their tender reminiscences, betrayal, jealousy and separation.

Directed by Kate HerbertRead by Jenny Lovell, Geoff Wallis 2pm, December 1 at La Mama Theatre

love is my sinSonnets selected by Peter Brook

A play that explores the lives of ordinary people living in the besieged Gaza strip in the winter of 2008.

Written by Samah SabawiCreative producer: Rand HazouPerformed by Wahibe Moussa, Jomana Najem, Hanna Norris, Veronica Porcar, Osamah Sami and Majid Shokor2pm, October 13 at La Mama Theatre

tales of a city by the sea

THE PORTAGE OF LUKE RUSCHMEYER TO AH

39.

November 5

FeaturingGrant Caldwell

Jamie King-HoldenJulez

Anna Fern

A night featuring of some of the best spoken word and poetry that Melbourne has to offer.

The emphasis on not one single style, but a purposeful blending of different approaches

to the beauty and wisdom of The Word.

Poetica box office & bar 7.30pmPerformance 8pm

$12 Full / $8 ConcessionLa Mama Theatre

la mama poetica

Amy Tankard & Friends Percussion, voice

RANTAU (West Sumatran music project)

Adrian Sherriff, Steve Grant, Tom Fryer–West Sumatran instruments, wind

instruments and acoustic guitars

October 8 at La Mama Theatre

Solos, Duos, TrioAndrea Keeble

Violin and electronics

Anita HustasDouble bass and percussive things

Rosie WestbrookElectric guitar, double bass and other things

December 10 at La Mama Courthouse

Musica box office & bar 7pm | Concert 7.30pm$15 Full / $10 Concession

(includes free hot drinks and nibbly treats)

la mama musica

41.

December 23

The ephemeral is the collision of the past and the future…

The final event on La Mama’s calendar is a live art experience that will bring artists

from a range of practices together to explore the notion of temporality.

Sun 7.30pm$15 Full / $10 Concession

La Mama Theatre

la mama aesoterica

La Mama would like to thank the following for their generous support in 2012

October 10 - October 21

A sometimes funny, but tender story that explores sibling rivalry, parental care issues, and

making hard choices; but foremost it is a love story that neither age nor illness can damper.

Written by Belinda Lopez

Directed by Liz Perry

Performed by Rick Burchall,

Carrie Moczynski, Nadia Andaryand Mandie Combe

Wed - Sun 8pmLa Mama Courthouse

the window outside

Melbourne Writers Theatre presents two productions at La Mama Courthouse

For bookings visit melbwriters.org.au

43.

October 24 - November 3

All Marjory and Dmitri want is to bury their Aunt. But to do that they must face a woman

who won’t be buried, stairs that are getting up and leaving, and their Aunt’s dark history –

which is determined on fighting back.

An epic work of humour, poetry and pathos, exploring why bad things happen to good

people.

Written and directed by Neil TriffettPerformed by Maurice Mammoliti, Carolyn

Masson, Charlotte Nicdao and Sarah Plum-mer

Wed - Sun 8pmLa Mama Courthouse

the stairs are moving

VenuesLa Mama Theatre

205 Faraday Street Carlton

La Mama Courthouse349 Drummond Street Carlton

Please note that parking can be difficult (try Safeway or Carlton Clocktower, both

off Drummond Street, or City of Melbourne parking in Elgin Street near Lygon)

Both venues are just a short walk from Melbourne University tram stop

at Faraday & Swanston Street

La Mama is on Wurunjeri land, part of the Kulin nation, and the Committee

of Management, staff, and wider theatrical community acknowledge its

traditional custodians

InformationPhone: 03 9347 6948Email: info@lamama.com.auMonday - Friday: 10.30am - 5.30pmWeekends: 2pm - 4pm

TicketsExplorations $15Full $25Concession $15Playreadings $5

Bookings www.lamama.com.auPhone: 03 9347 6142

Bookings close at 4pm on the day of the performance

Please collect your tickets 15 minutes prior to the starting time of the performance

La Mama Theatre is registered by the Heritage Council Victoria and has recieved National Trust status www.lamama.com.au