Written
and Directed by Jenny de Reuck
Children's
Theatre at Murdoch continues its educational project bringing exciting stories
to life in a vibrant theatrical production for primary school children. This
year we meet the animals and birds of Australia as they enter the world of
sports competition that will take them from Fremantle to Athens for the Olympic
Games.
Athena
Emu has one ambition – to compete at the Athens Olympics. She and her friends
have been training hard and their coach is optimistic …. But the road to
Athens and sporting glory is anything but smooth! There’s evil afoot in the
Outback as a feral coach, Zorba the Fox, and his wicked side-kick, Aeschylus the
Cat, try to prevent Athena from achieving her life’s ambition. They have their
own mystery athlete in training
-and their sponsors want a winner -
but no-one can defeat Athena.
Join
the animals of Australia in their adventures in Nexus Theatre as Murdoch
Children’s Performing Group takes you on a fun-filled journey across the ocean
to Athens and the Olympic Games. There are duelling gods and goddesses, mythic
beasts and legendary heroes to add to a theatrical experience that will
entertain young audiences while informing them about an ancient era.
Athena Emu
at the Olympics
offers larger than life characters, dramatic conflicts as well as an educational
message: that it’s not whether you win or lose but how you play the game. The
performance includes a live band, a chorus of dizzy dancing cockatoos, and a
troupe of travelling acrobats whose circus skills will take your breath away! A
blend of historical fact and fiction, this play, like the others our company has
produced, is suitable for children of all ages but is particularly aimed at
Years 1 – 5.
(Photograph by Martina Muller, copyright 2004)
View the 'Athena Emu' Photo Gallery...
24 March 2004 - Workshop Rehearsal 21 April 2004 - Production Crew in Nexus
21 April 2004 - Workshop Rehearsal 6 May 2004 - Dance Workshop
12 May 2004 - Workshop Rehearsal Part One 12 May 2004 - Workshop Rehearsal Part Two
2 June 2004 - Nexus Rehearsal 7 June 2004 - Backstage at Nexus
7 June 2004 - Cast Photo Shoot Part One 7 June 2004 - Cast Photo Shoot Part Two
God bless with the whole constructing thing
(Elle comments on the construction of the Children's Theatre website) Elle Xu Xin
(Lindsay Lloyd's final design of the backdrops for 'Athena Emu at the Olympics')
(Photograph by Martina Muller, copyright 2004)
Being part of _ Athena Emu _ was a very fulfilling and exhilarating experience, especially since Jenny actually had the courage to leave all the music up to yours truly. Scary, that. I worked with a great team on the music - I was on keyboards, and we had our own Giulio Rosa on guitar and bass, as well as Andrew Lua who played a terrific trumpet and Peta Creasey on a funky flute - and they were very cooperative and dedicated while being open to experimenting with and contributing ideas. Given the theme of the Olympics, the style of music was very pop/soft-rock/gospel - much in the style of Disney's _ Hercules _ ; and at the risk of sounding self-absorbed which I don't mean to be, I'm proud of the songs that we performed during the run of the show.
Looking back, however, I realised that many of the songs in _ Athena _ were "stand alone" songs that enhanced the performance without necessarily enhancing the storyline. In other words, even if, say, the members of the band had fallen sick (God forbid!) and the songs couldn't be performed, the show could've gone on, I imagine, without too much of a setback. When I compare this with the songs we'd done for the previous year's _ Zak Zebra's African Safari, _ I could see almost immediately how songs that are infused with the narrative (or the narrative with the songs, whichever way you look at it) led to a tighter, more story-propelling performance, as there were such songs in _ Zak _ that were derived from actual dialogue and action in the script, and therefore were necessary to the telling of the tale. As such, this year's _ Captain Quokka _ will see an effort to combine both stand-alone songs with narrative songs... but we'll get to that soon enough, won't we...?
Still, _ Athena Emu at the Olympics _ was a great show, with a whole bunch of fantastic and hardworking performers who gave it their all (including our very own webmaster Andrew!), a great musical team who, through their own style and improvisational ingenuity, managed to greatly enhance what I'd written to a level I'd never dreamed, and, of course, a wonderful and devoted director and scriptwriter (who can this be? Whyyyyy, it's _ Jenny _ , of course!). Colourful, hilarious, contemporary and with a lesson for all -- both kids and adults, I dare say, were entranced. I know _ I _ was.
Nick Choo
Check out the pictures and songs from this production on Nick's site @ http://geocities.com/nick_cmkit/productions.html
(Photograph by Martina Muller, copyright 2004)
Did you take part in any of these productions? Do you have any memories to share?
If you would like to contribute any comments, pictures or ideas to this page, please send submissions (with your name attached) to Andrew @ thechaseison@optusnet.com.au
View details on other Children's Theatre productions... The Secret of the Snotty Gobbles: A Fairy Story (2006)
Captain Quokka's Adventures on the High Seas (2005) Athena Emu at the Olympics (2004)
Zak Zebra 's African Safari (2003) Shakespeare at Sea (2002)
The
Minstrel's Tale (2001)
The Greatest Show on Earth:
Go to Children's Theatre: My Journal History Notice Board Your Work
Contact Andrew @ thechaseison@optusnet.com.au
This page last updated: 17th February 2006
Go to Children's Theatre: My Journal History Notice Board Your Work
This page last updated: 25th January 2006