Last month the Museum hosted the inaugural schools festival of museum theatre, Come Alive. Eight schools joined in, each one performing an original piece of theatre based on a story or exhibit in the Museum’s Eternity or Australian Journeys gallery. Students drew on the experiences of prominent Australians Jenny Kee, Annette Kellerman, Tim Sharp, Lindy Chamberlain, Olive King and the Tichbourne Claimant, and exhibits such as the Min Min Lights and the Race to the Gold Diggings game.
Workshops and a visit to the Museum helped prepare students for their task of researching and creating their own dramatic interpretation. Some chose to re-enact a historic event; others shared their contemporary take on the original story. Over the four days of the festival, the Museum’s Visions Theatre ‘came alive’ through a series of matinee and evening performances.
Some video highlights of the festival may yet come forth, but until then, behold the images and descriptions.
- Canberra College performed A Past of Beginnings, in which two young women discovered a suitcase of letters and photographs, each artefact telling an inspirational tale about an Australian woman. A contemporary piece that led us on a historical journey of discovery.
- Calwell High School students were the youngest in the festival. In Step Right Up – Everyone’s a Winner they transported the audience into a theatrical sideshow alley. Based on the story of Tom Wittingslow in Eternity, the young performers staged a very physical piece of theatre to capture the magic and thrill of the carnival.
- Dickson College students presented an exciting interpretation of Olive King’s story in Front Line Angels. Six different actresses portrayed the young Australian who found herself in Britain during the early years of World War I, inviting the audience to witness their duty, bravery and self-discovery.
- Erindale College presented an imaginative piece based on the Race to the Gold Diggings board game as a metaphor of the hardships and perils that faced those seeking their fortune at the Australian gold fields.
- Lake Ginninderra College presented two thought-provoking pieces. A Change of Kee explored the life of Australian artist Jenny Kee from her miraculous escape from the Granville train disaster to her later life as a fashion designer. In Shedding Light on the Min Min Mystery, students explored possible causes of the mysterious Min Min lights.
- Lake Tuggeranong College students produced a witty and entertaining Victorian melodrama to tell the tale of the Tichbourne claimant. Who was he really? Why did the case ever go to court? And why in the end did the Tichbourne family have their name inscribed on the coffin of a convicted cheat? These were some of the questions raised for the audience to consider.
- Merici College also presented two pieces. Lindy Chamberlain: The Australian Mystery recreated the frenzied turmoil that followed this tragedy. The students gave the audience a sympathetic yet very honest portrayal of this tragedy that tore not only a family but a whole nation apart. Just a Number followed the life of Olga Horak and the Jewish community who were caught up in the Holocaust. An intense and moving piece of theatre.
- Orana School students gave a stellar performance of the inspiring story of Tim Sharp, who continues to overcome the difficulties of living with autism. In a show as upbeat and quirky as Tim himself, the students told an amazing story of bravery and love in a way that deeply touched all who saw it.
Congratulations to the schools and students for your awesome effort and achievement. Thanks to Peter Wilkins for generating the buzz and buy-in among schools, Paul and Matt for invaluable tech help and George and Damien for excellent photography.
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