be tempted by tassie

Head south to the island state for a festival with bite

Roo’dTasmanians are a bunch of overachievers, how else can you explain their biennial arts festival Ten Days on the Island? Unlike other Australian states, which deliver a leisurely, month-long cultural programme in their capital city, over the Bass Strait it’s done in an intense burst from 23 March to 1 April across the whole isle.

From the outset there were clues of unrivalled festival ambitions. Before launching in 2001, a feasibility study recommended just eight locations, advice that founding artistic director Robyn Archer swiftly ignored, multiplying it four times. This year, in its fourth outing, new artistic director Elizabeth Walsh has programmed events for a staggering 50 island-wide sites.

The festival’s goal – to present artists from islands around the globe – is a canny one. For starters, it’s a loose yet effective framework given Australia, Manhattan, the UK and New Zealand all fit the bill. And it has illustrated how much islanders have in common. “There is an exoticness and specialness about people from islands,” says Walsh, who proudly identifies herself as Tasmanian, although raised in New South Wales. “You get the sense that being small is actually something to be treasured.”

Elizabeth WalshWhen asked about her inaugural festival as artistic director (previously she was its producer), Walsh outlines several areas: encouraging everyone to join in; finding new meaning in familiar places such as the Port Arthur Historic Site, one of Australia’s first penitentiaries; celebrating the state’s food and wine; and providing a legacy for artists. It will also, in what Walsh sees as the festival’s coming-of-age, be the first time theatre tours regionally.

Ten Days is roughly partitioned into two weekends, the first focusing on the south and the latter the north. Most free outdoor performances occur on the weekends, and kicking off this festival tradition is Dream Masons (Hobart, 23-26 March). Bring a rug and grab an uninterrupted view of the Salamanca Arts Centre, which will be the canvas for sea-themed light projections.

BeowulfOver 100 local artists and techies are involved in the production, including the ARIA-nominated (Australian Recording Industry Awards) Southern Gospel Choir. The crowd-pleasing programme continues with Isle of Plenty, a three-part regional series comprising a concert, free tastings of regional produce, and large-scale art installations (Cygnet, 24 March; Bridport, 28 March; and Lillico, 31 March).

A standout among ticketed performances is Mercy: a dance for the forgotten, which the festival has co-commissioned with Southern Lakes Festival of Colour in New Zealand – its first international collaboration (Hobart, 22–24 March; Ulverstone, 27–28 March; Launceston, 30–31 March). Acclaimed Kiwi choreographer Raewyn Hill, working with contemporary dance ensemble, Tasdance, presents a poignant piece referencing Port Arthur’s torturous convict past and the tragic 1996 massacre, as well as Argentina’s detention camp piece La Escuelita (The Little School).

Dublin By LamplightWeapons of mass destruction and fashion meld in the biting comedy Bikini (Hobart, 29 March to 1 April). The detonation of atom bombs on Bikini Atoll in 1946 coincided with French designers launching a two-piece swimsuit. Having thought their skimpy garment would arouse the same level of excitement as the explosions, they coined it the bikini – an absurd connection that New York performance artist Linda Mancini explores in her slapstick show. She won’t be dressed for the beach, but her different personas will cover everything bikini-related, from waxes to nuclear waste.

A festival exclusive is Dublin by Lamplight, by Irish physical theatre company The Corn Exchange (Hobart, 30 March to 1 April). This maniacal show is a dizzying fusion of comedy, melodrama and theatrical invention. The plot loosely hinges upon the founding of Ireland’s Abbey Theatre in 1904, depicting a strange and lurid world brought to life with lots of stylised direction, a piano player and tonnes of makeup.

Coming Home, 2005 from
Portrait of a Distant LandIf you’re after straight comedy, there are two prime candidates. New Zealand’s Wheeler’s Luck tells the tale of a grasping property developer in a rural community who wishes to transform the headland into a casino. Walsh has scheduled it to tour the state’s built-up east coast, in the hopes it will inspire debate (Scottsdale, 23 March; Rowella, 24 March; Bicheno, 25 March;

St Helens, 27 March; Swansea, 28 March; Sorell, 29 March; Hobart, 30 March to 1 April). Then there is humorist Andy Jones, who brings us his hour-long meditation on life, God and being an Irish-Catholic Newfoundlander in To the Wall (Hobart, 23–26 March; Stanley, 28 March; Latrobe, 30 March; Launceston, 31 March to 1 April).

New (Found) LandAmong classical offerings, there are two early music specialists: lutenist Hopkinson Smith who will perform A Dream (Oatlands, 27 March; Westbury, 29 March; Hobart, 30 March) and ensemble Ludovico’s Band (Hobart, 31 March). From the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, audiences can enjoy two accessible programmes featuring the works of Felix Mendelssohn, Sally Beamish and New Zealand composer Kenneth Young, in joint performances with the Saffir guitar quartet (Scottish Dawn: Devonport, 23 March; Hobart, 24 March; Trans Tasman Journey: Hobart, 31 March).

If you’re budget conscious, you can spend the entire 10 days simply appreciating visual art. Besides the major galleries, there are many unconventional sites to tour. Billboards in the state’s north will project Indigenous artist Ricky Maynard’s vivid photographs, Portrait of a Distant Land, like giant canvases at outdoor sites in Burnie, Latrobe, Devonport, St Leonards and Launceston (23 March to 1 April). On the west coast, people can visit Newfoundland printmaker William Ritchie in his temporary Queenstown studio where his work New[found]land will be on display (23 March to 1 April, closed 25 March), or see The Wildest Place exhibition, on at the West Coast Pioneers Memorial Museum (Zeehan, 2 March to 15 April).

Wheeler’s LuckThere is also wit in Walsh’s programme, such as the inclusion of Roo’d, a mob of giant performing kangaroos. “There’s something about them and roadkill that made me think,” she says guiltily. “A huge amount of animals perish on our roadways. It’s heartbreaking, hence the Roo’d boys are here. Maybe that’s a bit wicked.” Expect to see this free performance troupe bounding around Hobart’s Salamanca Place (24 March) and at the Port Arthur Picnic (25 March).

In 2005, the Pacific Crystal Palace tent was pitched on Parliament House’s lawn, which The Sunday Tasmanian summed up as “an inspired centre of festival fun”. The tent returns to Hobart’s more visible Princes Wharf, and will be better-equipped for dining and outdoor drinking (23 March to 1 April). The interior, which will feature a pacific décor with inlaid shells and fern motifs, will house some of the most popular and eclectic music acts, including Sydney’s Paul Capsis, pop star-turned-cabaret diva Christine Anu, and the French-raised West Indian musician David Walters.

Christine AnuIn cinema, Oscar-winning animator Adam Walker’s new work Sam and Piccolo, which took a painstaking three years to make, will headline Far Flung Flicks, a collection of short films from Tasmania and New Zealand (Adventure Bay, 23 March; Franklin, 24 March; Hobart, 25 March; Bothwell, 26 March; Campbell Town, 27 March; St Marys, 28 March; Launceston, 29 March; Wynyard, 30 March; Smithton, 31 March; and Zeehan, 1 April).

An arts festival always goes down better when accompanied by good food and wine. At this year’s festival you can eat a free, locally grown apple in Cygnet while attending Isle of Plenty, or splurge on

the AU$190 Simona at Strathlynn lunch at Daniel Alps’ restaurant while hearing the honeyed voice of Sardinia’s Simona Sallis (Rosevears, 29 March).

A different culinary experience is Drive in Holiday (Hobart, 24–25 March; Bridport, 27 March; Burnie, 31 March) where everyone huddles on camping stools and eats from eskies. The theatre and film production is a follow-up to 2005’s tribute to shack culture, Radio Holiday, and includes among its cast Leah Purcell, Kerry Armstrong, and six caravans. Another fanciful creation is the mad hatter’s tea party, Alice at the Allport (Hobart, 26 and 30 March), to be held at the State Library. Seven ceramic artists have been asked to create work inspired by the institution’s furniture and decorative arts collection; all that attendees need do to join the adventures in wonderland is dress the part. Walsh, reverting to cheeky mode, proclaims, “I’m getting my ears ready.”

WORDS CAROLINE MCCONNACHIE