Perth International Arts Festival

It’s all in the Family
Lindy Hume prepares for her last Perth International Arts Festival, with “The Human Family” as her four-year finale

WORDS MARGRET MEAGHER

The Love of the Nightingale

Keating! When Lindy Hume took over as artistic director of the Perth International Arts Festival (PIAF) in 2003, she must have felt nervous. Australia’s longest running international arts festival was reeling from big budget blowouts and a revolving staff door.

Now, with her fourth and final festival (almost) in the bag (9 February — 4 March 2007), Hume should relax. PIAF, with audience figures around 300,000 (2005), has regained its reputation. There’s a positive energy behind the scenes too, as the festival team braces itself for another frenetic three weeks of music, opera, dance, theatre, circus, exhibitions, books, film, and not to mention some serious eating and drinking. After all, Perth is the ideal festival city — easy to get around, friendly locals, a generous supply of watering holes, picture perfect picnic spots beside the Swan River and dreamy sunsets over the Indian Ocean.

The Taming of the ShrewThe 2007 festival has “The Human Family” as its main theme, with a programme that looks at relationships on a personal level — as lovers, family and friends — and also as part of the bigger picture — cultural connections across the world.

Hume attributes her own love of music and theatre to her family. Born in Sydney, she left school at 16 to try out as a professional dancer and in the early 80s, joined Opera Australia, which kick-started her career in opera. She went on to become artistic director at the West Australian Opera, Victoria State Opera and OzOpera and has had directing engagements in Germany, the US, the UK and Switzerland.

Raised by Wolves One of the 2007 festival highlights is the world premiere of Richard Mills’ new opera The Love of the Nightingale (10, 12, 14 February), directed by Hume herself. Based on a 3,000 year-old myth, this epic family drama has it all — illicit sex, rape, revenge, marriage, murder and come-uppance!

Circus Oz Further musical highlights include JS Bach’s Goldberg Variations (23 February) performed by Russian pianist Konstantin Lifschitz with improvisations by Finnish jazz pianist Iiro Rantala; a cappella group The Tallis Scholars, described by The New York Times as “the rock stars of Renaissance vocal music” (13 February); and Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem (18 February), based on Wilfred Owen’s stirring war poetry. Hume remarks on War Requiem: “Many of the players of the Australian Youth Orchestra and our trio of international singers are the same age as the soldier-poet Wilfred Owen when he died in World War I, giving this concert a rare poignancy.”

Lindy Hume Hume acknowledges that today’s audiences often prefer performances without an interval. The acclaimed dance production Wild Cursive, for example, runs for just 70 minutes. Presented by Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan, Wild Cursive (19—21 February) is the creation of Lin Hwai-min, Dance Europe magazine’s ‘Choreographer of the 20th century’.

One novel production is Back to Back’s Small Metal Objects (10—23 February). It’s a bittersweet story about two guys accidentally embroiled in an awards night fiasco. Set in Perth’s Forrest Place, against a background of city shoppers and commuters, the seated audience wears headphones and actors with radio microphones move through the square, their dialogue mixing with the music. It’s very funny but at the same time it will have you reassessing today’s often lopsided values. Don’t miss it.

It would be hard to have a festival about family relationships without including one of Shakespeare’s romantic comedies. PIAF has three! The Taming of the Shrew and Twelfth Night (24 February — 4 March) are presented by the all-male British theatre company, Propeller, and because they use the same set, it’s possible to see both plays in one day.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Tangled lovers’ tales continue with A Midsummer Night’s Dream, presented by Korea’s Yohangza Theatre Company (15-23 February) and performed in Korean with English subtitles. The hit of the 2005 Edinburgh Fringe Festival, this is a production that according to British Theatre Guide: “If you like Shakespeare, you’ll like this. If you don’t like Shakespeare, you’ll like this.”

On the flipside, everyone likes the circus — so be prepared. The delightful human Circus Oz is on the programme with its Laughing at Gravity tour (21 February — 5 March).

All ages will also delight in the musical The Adventures of Snugglepot & Cuddlepie and Little Ragged Blossom in a world premiere season (9-24 February). Based on May Gibbs’ Australian children’s classic, Snugglepot & Cuddlepie is a comedy that captures today’s political and social issues in an imaginative world of bushland characters.

The Kransky
SistersAnother musical comedy, Keating! (27 February — 4 March) also hits festival town after a sell-out success in Sydney. It’s a hilarious look at our very own antique-collecting political superhero and his battle against an assortment of mugs and scumbags. Hume acknowledges that her time at the Perth festival has increased her admiration for indigenous culture. PIAF is 54 years old this year and the festival stage has always been on Noongar (the largest indigenous population in Western Australia) land. Under Hume’s direction, Noongar culture has been placed firmly in the spotlight, festival staff have taken Noongar language lessons and stronger partnerships have been developed with indigenous groups.

This year, for the first time, audiences can learn the Pitjantjatjara language online (www.ninti.ngapartji.org) before experiencing the indigenous multimedia production Ngapartji Ngapartji (23 February — 2 March).

The Adventures of
Snugglepot & Cuddlepie

Festival-goers can also join the 1,000 strong Festival Choir, which was an enormous hit in 2004, to sing the traditional Noongar Welcome in a specially commissioned piece by WA composer Iain Grandage on the festival’s opening night (9 February).

On the same night, a massive bamboo installation starts its two-week amble through the streets of Perth. Bambuco’s Travelling Curtain (9—25 February) literally eats its tail, as lengths of bamboo are taken from the back and carried to the front to make an ever-changing 10 metre-high and 240 metre-long moving sculpture.

As in past festivals, there is a strong emphasis on free exhibitions. One highlight is The Art Gallery of Western Australia’s quirky and interactive exhibition Raised By Wolves (9 February — 17 June), which looks at alternative views of what family means today. A great one for teenagers and their families!

The ever popular Film Festival runs until 1 April, at two outdoor cinema locations — at the University of WA and Joondalup Pines at Edith Cowan University — with another regional programme for Albany in February. Make a point of seeing The Page Turner, starring Catherine Frot, one of the most talked about films at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival.

Writers’ Week (22—28 February), as usual, hosts an impressive international and local line- up, while the Perth Festival’s One Book looks set to repeat its earlier success. Introduced in 2005, One Book encourages people to read and discuss a particular book and 1,000 copies are distributed to WA libraries. This year Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief is the selected title. It was number three on the New York Times bestseller list in its first week. Plus there’s the One Book Comedy Debate: “Is Propaganda a Dying Art?”

After dark, Beck’s Verandah is the festival hotspot for all types of music, comedy and cabaret. It’s also a great place to catch up with artists and friends over a beer or two. Sample a taste of 1920s Berlin cabaret with The Tiger Lillies, belly laugh with The Kransky Sisters, choose from Middle Eastern music, jazz, pop and rock ‘n’ soul or hit the dance floor.

Come March, Shelagh Magadza, currently Associate Director of PIAF, will take over the festival reins. Hume is looking forward to time out on her farm on the south coast of New South Wales. There is also an Australia Council Theatre Board Fellowship, opera engagements in New Zealand and Australia, and Hume hopes to direct her first play.

It’s perhaps revealing that Lindy Hume wears a ring inscribed with the German word “traum”, meaning “to dream”. Maybe that’s the secret of her success — the ability to translate dreams for members of her very large festival family.

Hume acknowledges that her time at the Perth festival has increased her admiration for indigenous culture.

Wild Cursive Bookings

Online
www.perthfestival.com.au or www.bocsticketing.com.au

Telephone
BOCS tel: +61 (8) 9484 1133 and 1800 193 300 (Australian country callers) Monday — Saturday 9am-8pm. Event info +61 (8) 6488 5555 Monday — Friday 9am-5pm.

In Person
At any BOCS outlet/agency; check the website for information.

Door Sales
Tickets may be purchased one hour prior to the start of performances at each venue, subject to availability.

Pre and Post-show fun:

Beck’s Verandah
Perth Concert Hall, 5 St George’s Terrace, tel: +61 (8) 9484 1133, www.perthfestival.com.au Open from 7.30pm, seven days a week, 8.30pm start for performances. Ticket holders only until 10.30pm. Free entry for all after 10.30pm.

Black Tom’s Oyster Bar
Buzzy atmosphere in the heart of Perth’s business district. 27 Ord Street, West Perth, tel: +61 (8) 9321 6100, www.blacktoms.com.au

Brisbane Hotel
Great international bistro food by the Winner of the National Bar Awards - New Hotel of the Year 2005 and Hotel of the Year 2006. 292 Beaufort Street, Highgate, tel: +61 (8) 9227 2300 www.thebrisbanehotel.com.au

Fraser’s Restaurant
Stunning views of the Swan River and Perth city.
Fraser Avenue, Kings Park, tel: +61 (8) 9481 7100, www.frasersrestaurant.com.au

Must Winebar
Contemporary French cuisine. 519 Beaufort Street, Highgate, tel: +61 (8) 9328 8255, www.must.com.au

Zafferano at the Old Swan Brewery
Seafood and elegant ambience by the Swan River. 173 Mounts Bay Road, Crawley, tel: +61 (8) 9321 2588, www.zafferano.com.au