Love – an Act of Bravery: Katie Noonan x Melbourne Symphony Orchestra

What is love if not an act of bravery? Loving someone despite the hardships. Loving someone even if their actions cause you pain. As a poet, deciphering love is one of my passions, so I was curious then to attend this show to see – or more so hear – interpretations of love. I have a certain obsession with music. It can capture what words cannot. Having a full orchestra on stage excites me. Katie Noonan with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, together with the Melbourne Youth Orchestra, conducted by Carlo Antonioli – I wasn’t missing this. 

I became a fan of Katie’s music when I first came across her song ‘Special Ones’ when Casey Donovan did a cover for Australian Idol many years ago. Back then I was married, sheltered and repressed. Then a few years later, I was only just emerging in the arts sector when I became a single mum. I saw Katie was performing at a jazz club in Melbourne and it was sold out, I contacted her and said I was a new single mum and could she please make space for me and my daughter as I was extremely isolated. She was so kind to me and organised two tickets. I remember sitting on the floor (as there were no seats vacant) and my five-year-old daughter falling asleep in my lap to Katie’s music. 

I guess that’s how I’ve always felt about the sound of Katie’s voice. It’s soothing, relaxing, calming, comforting. My interactions with Katie since that day have always been pleasant. Once I found myself a guest on Jon Faine’s ABC show the same day as Katie and I was so happy to meet her in person. She’s always been kind to me when I’ve emailed her every now and then asking advice on ‘being an artist’. There are so many sharks in this industry, so many not nice people – sorry, that’s the hard truth. Katie isn’t one of them. And her giving, kind nature comes across in her music. Her music creates a feeling of warmth in your heart, and in today’s climate, for me, it’s welcomed with open arms.  

For this one-off show at Hamer Hall at the Melbourne Arts Centre with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Katie performed a variety of songs to convey the complexity of love, from opera in foreign language to songs that inspired her. She also sang a few of her own songs while playing the piano together with the orchestra.

For those who read my reviews, I always use the cry test to gauge the impact and quality of a performance/show. I did cry, and I’ll explain when too. First Katie started the night with a few pieces by Benjamin Britten. She told us later that he was a gay man living in the 1940s at a time when it was illegal to be gay, and he wrote songs for his lover while never admitting his sexuality. His songs were his act of resistance. 

Katie then left the stage and we had the pleasure of witnessing/hearing the world premiere 2024 Cybec Young Composer in Residence Naomi Dodd’s debut piece ‘A song for the sleeping’. I think it was the combination of Katie‘s first pieces layered with this piece which triggered the tears – and they were free flowing. In the first section Katie, perfectly timed with the orchestra, was timid, peaceful, restrained. Then we had this overwhelmingly emotive piece by Naomi that was just beautiful, a dreamy musical landscape. It was so powerful it literally carried me all the way into my lost lover’s arms. 

The night continued with Katie performing carefully handpicked songs, each song adding another layer of meaning to this enigma we call love. It was hard not to cry or not to feel emotional. While I loved all the music presented, I would have preferred more pieces of Katie’s – sorry, I just love her music! I especially liked when she sang her song Bluebird with the orchestra; it made the song so much more powerful. By the end of the show I felt a catharsis had taken place and I was very relaxed and soothed and comforted and ready for a good night’s sleep. I guess that’s what Katie’s voice does to me. 

Koraly Dimitriadis

Koraly Dimitriadis is a Cypriot-Australian bestselling poet, writer and performer and the author of Love and F—k Poems, Just Give Me The Pills and She’s Not Normal. Her theatre show “I say the wrong things all the time” premiered at La Mama.