Five Years of Gathering
Producer Performer Glen Ferguson of The Vic Theatre Company speaks to Coral Drouyn about his ambitious undertaking, presenting two musicals in tandem at Melbourne’s 45 Downstairs in November / December 2016.
There’s a new trend in Melbourne independent theatre – the performer/producer. One can see instantly the advantages, especially in musical theatre, but there is surely something just a little insane about anyone wanting to take on the humungous job of producing.
Glenn Ferguson chuckles at the suggestion, but he doesn’t deny it.
“I suppose when you have an obsession with anything it’s a little bit like craziness, and I have been obsessed with theatre since I was a small child,” he tells me.
Glenn’s obsession led him into training at VCA and then graduating from the prestigious WAAPA before performing around the country.
“I’m grateful for the experience,” Glenn admits, “but I quickly realised how many great shows there were that I would never get to be in and the public would never get to see. And I think, as a young performer, you have your finger on a different pulse to that of older, seasoned producers. I truly believe there is a market for some of these great shows that have never been seen.”
Glenn took the plunge in 2015, forming The Vic Theatre Company and mounting a production of the rare musical biography of Gertrude Stein – Loving, Repeating – as part of the Midsumma Festival. It was a triumph and the new company was instantly noticed.
“I thought it would have a small audience for Midsumma and a few people would be interested enough to follow what we did next, but I honestly didn’t expect such tremendous response, thanks largely to my director Jason Langley and a fabulous collection of cast and creatives. It was all a bit surreal when the nominations came in,” Glenn says.
The show was nominated for seven Green Room Awards, winning several, and the production started a buzz in the industry.
Never one to do things by half, Glenn decided to double the output by doing TWO musicals at once. The Gathering, a new Australian Musical by the highly talented Belinda Jenkins and Will Hannagan, has been workshopped and presented as part of the New York Musical Theatre Festival, and further developed through a long process here.
“We all know the problem with new Australian works,” Glenn explains. “There’s never enough money or time for development. For Broadway shows the development can take up to ten years and cost millions before the show has a full production. We don’t have that luxury, or money, and so it’s a sad fact that a lot of Australian musicals don’t get the time or financing they need. That often means they are not ready, and never reach their potential. Well I am here to absolutely promise that The Gathering is READY, and it is a terrific show; it really is, full of great music and performances.”
But, as a Producer, Glenn knows that it’s important to get bums on seats, and that often audiences won’t come to see new Australian works.
“That’s where The Last Five Years comes in,” he tells me. “It’s a terrific Broadway Musical by Jason Robert Brown, much acclaimed, an award winner, but rarely done professionally. So I decided to find two great stars of Musical Theatre and present it in tandem with The Gathering.”
The two great names cast in the show are Josh Piterman and Verity Hunt-Ballard, and it’s a rare chance to see two of our classiest and best known performers together on stage.
“The Gathering has a bigger cast than the two-hander, but they are just as impressive. Chris Parker is directing both shows, which are very different, so it has been a little crazy in the rehearsal room,” Glenn says.
Which brings me back to my starting point. Is Glenn crazy to be producing two musicals in tandem, and offering audiences the chance to see BOTH at a reduced ticket price?
“Well, maybe a little,” he concedes, “but I wouldn’t be presenting these shows if I didn’t believe they are going to be great. Of course the aim is to give the audience something new, along with something tried and true. That’s my driving force. But the audience needs to give new musicals a chance, or we will be watching revivals forever. So that’s the plan; if people who want to see The Last Five Years just buy a ticket to The Gathering because they get a bargain price for TWO shows…and then they love both…we ALL benefit from that.”
Both shows open this weekend, playing alternate night performances, but on Saturdays and Sundays up to December 10th, 2016 you can see BOTH shows in the one day. That sounds like a plan to me.
Images; Josh Piterman and Verity Hunt-Ballard, Glenn Ferguson and The Gathering.
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