New Musicals Australia Announces Next Round of Workshops

New Musicals Australia has announced the next round of works selected to undergo workshops for further development in November / December 2011, and the creative teams.

“New Musicals Australia is very excited about the announcement of the Workshops selections. The panel had a tremendously difficult task in selecting these wonderful works – a testament to the incredible, untapped talent we have here in Australia. We have an interesting and diverse selection of workshops from some very talented teams of people,” said Director of New Musicals Australia, Kris Stewart.

New Musicals Australia is an initiative dedicated to the production of original Australian musical theatre. All works submitted were read by members of the New Musicals Australia advisory panel and all shortlisted works will now receive further consideration by NMA artistic staff, representatives of the Australia Council Music Board and other industry professionals. From this shortlist, works are selected to receive workshopping opportunities within the New Musicals Australia initiative. Advisory panel members who read submitted works included Will Conyers, Peter Cousens, Neil Gooding, Roger Hodgman, Anne-Maree McDonald, Guy Noble and John Senczuk.

The Writers’ Weekend, which runs from Friday, 25 to Sunday, 27 November launches the November/ December season of workshops and will comprise of three snapshot presentations and the first workshop presentation. In celebration of Australian talent and to kick off the summer workshop season, New Musicals Australia will also host an evening concert on Saturday, 26 November as part of the Writers’ Weekend with industry professionals performing new Australian works.

Four different works are receiving the Workshop Presentation, which will grant each project a one week’s rehearsal period with a professional cast and production team, followed by a presentation of the work in November and December 2011. The four recipients of the Workshop presentation are:

Truth, beauty and a picture of you

By Tim Freedman & Alex Broun

Based on the life, characters and songs of one of Australia's greatest singer-songwriters, Tim Freedman

Directed by Neil Gooding,Truth, beauty and a picture of you is being presented on Friday, 2 & Saturday, 3 December. Venue yet to be confirmed.

Transport

By Larry Kirwan &Thomas Keneally

Transport tells a universal story of immigration, loss, hope and redemption and the Irish Diaspora to the Australian penal colony.

Under the direction of Director,Stuart Maunder and Musical Director, Anne-Maree McDonald, Transport is being presented on Friday, 25 November and Sunday, 27 November at Sidetrack Theatre.

Following the success of its inaugural season in March this year, New Musicals Australia is also including presentations in Melbourne.

The Good Fight

Music by David King, book and lyrics by Nick Enright, with further material by James Millar

Director Rachel Moorhead and original creator, Musical Director David King

Set against the background of the 1^st World War, The Good Fight concerns the life of legendary boxer Les Darcy and his meteoric rise and fall.

The Good Fight is being presented at The Concourse, the stunning new theatre complex in Chatswood on Friday, 16 and Saturday, 17 December.

Carnival Joe

By Mark Jones & Anthony Crowley

An exuberant and tragically comical tale about the spring racing carnival of 1933

Carnival Joe is being presented on Saturday, 10 and Sunday, 11 December at a Melbourne venue soon to be announced. Christian Leavesley is directing, with Mark Jones, the original composer as Musical Director.

As part of New Musicals Australia’s commitment to developing and unveiling new Australian work, many of the workshop sessions are open to the public.

Tickets to most events are free but bookings are essential as space is limited.

Ticket requests to all events can be made via the New Musicals website

www.newmusicals.com.au

Musical Snapshots

During the Writers’ Weekend, the Musical Snapshots initiative, a thirty minute portion of three different works, will be presented in concert to an industry panel and general audience. All three shows will receive feedback from a panel of industry professionals and a chance to perform a sample of the show in front of an audience. Scheduled for its Snapshot presentation on Saturday, 26 November, Sugartown, by Katie Weston, Dean Gourley & Katy Roose exposes the sweet but sour lives led by the dealer, the drug lord and the undercover cop. On the same day, Sugartown is followed by a Snapshot Presentation of Phillip Johnston & Hilary Bell’s Do Good and You Will Be Happy, which drawing on our heritage of Australian vaudeville and music hall enters the fanciful world of Edward William Cole.

Soul Music by Marcus Cowora, Stephen Lloyd Helper and Leeroy Bilney follows the story of Jim, an indigenous man who tries to climb the corporate ladder and is scheduled for its Musical Snapshot on the last day of the Writers’ Weekend, Sunday, 27 November.

New Musicals Australia is an initiative dedicated to the production of original music theatre in Australia. The program focuses on providing writers and composers with the opportunity to have their scripts and songs workshopped by professionals and presented to high level industry peers, creative industry leaders and general audience members. New Musicals Australia also supports a variety of other initiatives targeted at developing new works, establishing networks and providing support for independent writers.  

For more information on New Musicals Australia

www.newmusicals.com.au

August 25, 2011

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