Sunday Arts Magazine

Warren Wills, Melbourne born, London based, Warren Wills is a multi-award winning composer, musical director and performer who has worked with many of the world’s best cabaret, opera, jazz and classical artists. One of the most versatile and gifted musicians on the international scene, he has authored 8 original operas, 10 musicals, 13 children’s musicals, 25 albums ( with Prestige Records on iTunes, and Spotify), 5 major orchestral works and music direction credits on more than 50 productions. Warren has played and composed for the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC), as well as for Woody Allen in New York City, Pamela Anderson in London, and has toured extensively in Europe, Asia and the US, with appearances on MTV in the Middle East.

Credits include: Winner of Best Musical: Carling London Award 1992 for Pinmoney Opera which he co-wrote with Christiana Jones; Runner-up, Critics Circle Award for Josephine; Twice finalist for the Vivian Ellis Award for Moscow Belongs To Me and House Of Obsession; Musical Director and Arranger Soul Train, nominated for Olivier Award for Best Entertainment; Composer of Critics Choice Card Index (BAC); Composer and pianist on the album Lost And Found; Composer Great Expectations (UK/Philadelphia co-production); Composer and Musical Director Ella and Marilyn (Stratford East Theatre); Composer Penelopiad (RSC production Swan Theatre, Ottawa); Musical Director The Realness (Young Vic with Only Connect); Composer and Musical Director Happy Hooker (launched NYC); Xmas with Alistair McGowan (Riverside studios); numerous solo albums as part of the Maestro series for Prestige Records including Eleven Aspects and Piano Classics, and Composer and founder of INTERNATIONAL SHED, a collaborative, socially inclusive musical theatre for children from disadvantaged and special needs backgrounds in Australia, Hong Kong and UK.

Richard Watts is an arts writer and broadcaster who lives on Wurundjeri country in inner-city Melbourne. Since 2009 he has written for the arts industry website ArtsHub.com.au, where he is currently employed as the National Performing Arts Editor. Richard is also a volunteer broadcaster at community radio station Three Triple R FM, where he has hosted the weekly program SmartArts since December 2004.

The founder of the Pink Magpies (the first LGBTIQ supporters group in the AFL) and the Emerging Writers Festival, Richard currently serves as the Chair of La Mama Theatre’s volunteer Committee of Management. He has also served as President of the Green Room Awards Association, as the Chair of Melbourne Fringe, and as a member of the Green Room Awards’ Independent Theatre panel.

Richard was a co-founder of the popular Thursday night club Q + A (Queer + Alternative) which ran from 1995 – 2007 and edited the queer weekly newspaper MCV for several years. A life member of the Melbourne Queer Film Festival, he was awarded the status of Melbourne Fringe Living Legend in 2017. recently Richard was presented with the Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards’ Facilitator’s Prize for 2019.

The Helpmann award winner Ali McGregor is an Australian soprano opera singer, actress and cabaret performer. She has performed in operas in the United Kingdom, in Australia and in New Zealand. Her cabaret performances have been seen at festivals in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Australia ( she has performed in Spiegeltents around the world). Ali is creative director of a lot of her own productions. She has been Artistic Director of the Adelaide Cabaret Festival.

Her variety show Ali McGregor’s Late-Nite Variety-Nite Night has become a fixture at The Melbourne International Comedy Festival, Showcasing the cream of the performers in a late night show.

MAREE COOTE is a writer, designer, illustrator, photographer and publisher. She has enjoyed an award-winning career in advertising and understands Melbourne’s unique advantage well. … MELBOURNE ARTISTS – Melbournestyle has also become a home for other local designers and artists: With a gallery space upstairs from her “Melbourne Style” store stocks a myriad of products designed by her.

Her books have been available around the world, winning awards and a huge fan base. One of her recent books – AZARIA ( yes Lindy Chamberlain’s baby) is a ground breaking – True History, told in a nursery rhyme style.

Maree will be on stage discussing her art style and part of the panel.

John O’Hara is one of the country’s most versatile and in demand performers. Hailing from Perth and a graduate of WAAPA, John most recently wowed Tasmanian audiences as Dr Frank N. Furter in The Rocky Horror Show at The Theatre Royal, Hobart. His other work includes playing Ned Schneebly in the Australasian premiere production of School of Rock, Bernadette in Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, Rodney in Dusty, Rum Tum Tugger in Cats, Roscoe Dexter in Singin’ In The Rain, Peter in Jesus Christ Superstar and The Father in the tenth anniversary tour of Wicked.

Other credits include Hair, Shout!, Eureka, Leader Of The Pack, High Society, Oklahoma!, The Boy From Oz, Rock of Ages, Company, Grease, Elegies, Songs For A New World, Songs From An Unmade Bed and the upcoming The Who’s Tommy for The Victorian Opera.

John is a featured vocalist for internationally esteemed Queen tribute act Rock Rhapsody, performing ongoing engagements regularly at all corners of the globe.

John’s writing credits include his solo cabaret #VAL – A Campfire Kiki With Mother, commissioned exclusively by Perth Theatre Trust. #VAL consistently earns 5 star reviews and continues to play sellout seasons and festivals nationwide. Artistic Director, Alan Cumming selected #VAL for his 2021 Adelaide Cabaret Festival and an invitation subsequently followed to perform at his famous Club Cumming. Other self penned works include Dedications, commissioned by Adelaide Cabaret Festival and A Very Merry Christmas Cabaret for Perth Theatre Trust. Recently, John premiered That’s Not Your Light, John! for the inaugural Perth International Cabaret Festival and was guest artist for the launch event for The West Australian Jazz Project’s A Very Jazzy Christmas at Perth Concert Hall.

John is a qualified marriage celebrant and a popular radio broadcaster for Melbourne’s JOY94.9 appearing as one half the hugely successful Dee and Johnno Show, The Drive Thru With Johnno and most recently joining the team as co-host of Joy Weekend Breky.

Nathan pops in to have a discussion about his past and future projects.

Striding into the new year, February 2022 sees Melbourne’snew kid on the block, Antipodes Theatre Company, burst onto the stage during Midsumma with the Australian premiere of Harrison David River’s And She Would Stand Like

This. Greek tragedy meets Queer ball culture in this fierce and fabulous new play, adapted from Euripides’ The Trojan Women and inspired by the seminal documentaryParis is Burning.

House mother, Hecuba, has dedicated her life to protecting her children and the chosen family that they all cling

to for comfort and support. But when a mysterious plague begins to rip through their community they face their biggest challenge yet, as they are forced to engage with a society that doesn’t understand or even value their ex-

istence…

A modern observation of HIV/AIDS that recontextualises Greek characters as Queer bodies of colour, And She

Would Stand Like This is a powerful roar and fight for survival.

“This show is a celebration of the balls and culture that inspired Pose, Paris is Burning and RuPaul’s Drag Race – featuring vogueing sequences, larger-than-life characters, and heart-thumping musical interludes.”, adds ATC Ar-

tistic Director Brandon Pape. “And since it’s based on The Trojan Women, we’ll take audiences on an emotional roller coaster that explores themes of survival, betrayal, and finding your chosen family. The space will be configured like a fashion show, with a runway down the middle and audience on two sides facing each other – blurring the line between audience and stage. I have no doubt that this show is going to provide one of the most unique and eclectic experiences at the 2022 Midsumma.”

Launching in 2019, Antipodes Theatre Company is a prime example of the fortitude and creativity firmly planted

in the Melbourne Independent Arts sector. Founded by a group of New York ex-pats, the company swiftly evolved

with onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and over the past two years has created a dedicated community through

their various online programs and shows, and sharp business acumen. They strive to maintain an inclusive and

safe workspace, with productions that have a dedicated focus on working with women, ethnically diverse artists, people with disability, trans and non-binary people, seniors, and other members of historically or culturally mar-

ginalised communities who are not well represented on stage.

Starring Melbourne’s own Kikki Temple and showcasing an incredible cast of local IBPOC artists, And She Would

Stand This Way promises to be a definite highlight on the 2022 Victorian Arts Calendar,

Weave It! is a free, 17-day interactive and evolving exhibition, multi-sensory installation and workshop series for children and their grown-ups, held at The Store, at Abbotsford Convent. For Weave It! Abbotsford Convent has commissioned a creative collaboration between multidisciplinary textile artists Lisa Waup (Gunditjmara and Torres Strait Islander) and John Brooks.

Throughout the month of January, children are invited to collaborate with the artists and each other, immersing themselves in the engaging practices of textiles and weaving, resulting in a “takeover” as the work grows into a wonderland of colourful, bright, fun fabrics and textures throughout the space. DIY videos can be seen here.

The exhibition will be supported by artist facilitation (including drop-in, hands-on workshops and come-and-go activities) enabling children and families to learn hands-on craft practices grounded in First Nations explorations of interconnectivity, storytelling, and sustainability. While incorporating natural and found materials such as sticks or recycled materials to build into the work, participants can spark discussions about recycling materials, retelling the stories of our cultures and celebrating community.

Artists Lisa and John are passionate about everyone’s right to access great contemporary arts experiences. “Children are often framed as passive receivers of art that was made without them in mind, and we want to turn this around. We believe that children should have an active engagement in arts and their community, and this exhibition will help facilitate this,” says Lisa.

“Weaving works well with children because it follows a simple, repetitive formula that can produce small or large outcomes, using a variety of objects and materials,” John explains. “I hope that the children will take away the ability to look at everyday objects as potential materials, and learn to make string out of anything… which will hopefully lead to a wide range of children growing up with the ability to transform textile waste into functional textile materials. The fashion industry is one of the world’s biggest polluters, so I hope that the kids will become more resourceful and use the ideas in these workshops to slow down their own consumption as they grow up.”

Lisa Waup is a Gunditjmara and Torres Strait Islander and Italian woman born in Naarm (Melbourne). A multidisciplinary artist and curator, she works across weaving, printmaking, photography, sculpture, textiles, jewellery and installation. Waup’s studio-based practice illustrates and symbolises her life’s journey through discovery and connection. Her work highlights the importance of tracing lost history, ancestral relationships, Country, motherhood and time through woven stories of her past, present and future into contemporary forms. Currently Waup is undertaking a Master of Contemporary Art Degree at the VCA at Melbourne University. She has exhibited at multiple galleries across Australia along with ReDot Gallery in Singapore and been acquired by many national and international collections, including the NGV.

John Brooks is a Melbourne-based multimedia artist, whose practice reflects the interconnected, anthropomorphic qualities and relationships between objects and humans. Originally trained as a textile designer, Brooks now works predominantly with hand-weaving techniques combined with various mediums such as video, performance, sculpture and installation. He has exhibited extensively in Melbourne, interstate and internationally over the past ten years.

SICK provides complicated critiques pervading notions and expectations of artists with disability, in an attempt to reframe the debate. Beyond a definition of physical and mental illness, ‘sick’ contains both negative and positive associations. For Ryan, a person with autism, ‘sick’ implies an impulse to act out of the ordinary with his body and thoughts; to arrange things the way he feels and sees them. Phillip and Ryan turn the negative on its head, taking inspiration in the slang connotations of the word ‘sick’ as ‘cool’ or ‘fabulous’.

Phillip and Ryan work together to meld their disparate quirks, foibles, histories and limitations into a piece filled with dark humour, radical sentiment, sharp social commentary and ever-present dysfunction. SICK speaks about the beauty and awkwardness of moving and failing, as Phillip and Ryan put their mismatched bodies on the line to create this uniquely framed, personally exposing quest for shared grace.

Choreographic quirk is accentuated by the glam-shock meets rhinestone-biker-trash aesthetics of visual artist Jake Preval’s design; a psychedelic gnome garden further sets the scene of Ryan’s indefatigable and visionary imagination.

SICK’s debut at Midsumma Festival at Temperance Hall will move audiences through an entertaining and immersive shared visceral experience, purposely designed to shift perceptions around the capabilities of artists – and everyone – with disability.

Stephen talks to the Sunday Arts Team about Films.