Too Young To Be Angels is a fundraising event to be held at the Drill Hall Theatre from tomorrow, January 5, until Sunday, January 14.
The Too Young To Be Angels season hopes to raise funds for the premiere production of Stephen Edgar’s The Eldershaw Chronicles adapted for the stage and directed by Gregory Aitken and designed by Sunita Bailey.
Opening night with Maroon
The opening night event will see the Maroon ensemble featuring Hans Lovejoy on double bass, pianist Dr Fred Cole, drummer Ben Cox and trumpet player Govinda Abbott.
Maroon’s repertoire spans the classic sounds of trio jazz standards, originals, as well as jazz interpretations of pop standards. While Govinda is a recent member of the band, the trio met over ten years ago and were the rhythm section for the Big Band At The End Of The Universe, an 18-piece ensemble that performed Count Basie, Ellington and modern arrangements.
This wonderful show will begin at 7.30pm Friday.
Double bill with James Ricketson
Saturday at 7pm there will be a screening of a James Ricketson double bill – Sleeping with Cambodia will be followed by James presenting Risky Business, an interactive theatre performance.
Film director, Ricketson is known for the feature film Blackfellas became more widely known after he was charged with espionage for flying a drone in Cambodia in 2017.
The film of his experience in the South East Asian country is Sleeping with Cambodia
James’s stage show, Risky Business, will follow the film.
Fifteen months in a maximum security prison
Ricketson told The Echo that he spent fifteen months in a maximum security prison in Cambodia, sharing a hot cell with 140 other prisoners. ‘Sounds dreadful, doesn’t it? And, yes it was, but it was also a wonderful experience, and one I am grateful for.
‘How can this be? Do I have any regrets for losing 15 months of my freedom? No. Do I have fond memories? Yes. How can this be?
‘Every life experience is an opportunity to learn something about oneself, about one’s fellow human beings, about the world we each live in; about the world that others have no choice but to live in that is so different from our own. Think, right now, of Palestinians living in, trying to stay alive in, Gaza.
‘Compassion. Empathy.
‘Do we learn of the importance of these qualities, essential to civilisation, more effectively than by being forced, by life circumstances beyond our control, to experience, first hand, the experiences that others we will never know and never meet?
It is a risky business being a human
‘It is a risky business being a human being. It always has been, for as long as our ancestors took enormous risks, generation after generation, to survive and, hence, become our ancestors. Those who took the risks but did not survive did not become our ancestors. Our family trees are filled with resilient risk-takers only.
‘Risky behaviour on my part led to my spending 15 months in a maximum security prison, but my life has been, as all our lives are, filled with a multitude of risks.
‘If you swam in the ocean this morning you took a risk, albeit small. As you did when you drove to the beach. As you did when you decided to have children with your partner, when you took this job rather than that one.
Heart says ‘yes, mind says ‘be cautious’
‘All life is, among other things, a process of risk management: “Am I prepared to take the risk of making this decision and taking responsibility for it? My heart says “yes”, but my mind says “be cautious”.
‘We are all in this boat, all the time, though most of our risk assessments take place beneath the level of consciousness.
‘There is plenty in my experience of incarceration in Prey Sar to satisfy the appetite of listeners with a love for prison adventure stories, but what remains of most significance for me is what I learned about risk, resilience, the pointlessness of harbouring regrets, the importance of time to reflect (prison provides plenty of opportunities for this), the joys of reading and much much more.
‘I do not particularly like to be lectured to by speakers who love the sound of their own voice, but love to engage in dialogue with fellow Homo sapiens whose life experiences both echo my own, and those whose experiences are totally different from mine and from which I can learn.
‘Hence my wish, my hope, that my time onstage will be as interactive as the audience would like it to be’.
Nine days of great shows
Other special events during the season include a free event with Michael Hennessy: Reflections of a Dancer. Michael will be in conversation with Gregory Aitken. Sunday, January 7 from 11am – and at 7pm on Sunday Dance Salon – A showcase of pieces crafted by Kimberley McIntyre and friends
On Monday a special film by the season’s angel, Richard Mordaunt The Making of The Mullumbimby Gateway.
Alson on Monday at 7pm: Two Journeys ~ A Photographic Exhibition by John McCormick and Gerhard Veit projected onto the silver screen.
On Tuesday at 7.30pm is Women Beyond Time; Memoirs Through Poetry, directed by Avia Sebasio~Ong and Maureen Lill as read by Linda Rutledge, Sonia Borenstein, Liz Chance, Kate Horsley, Cate Feldman, Lorrie Cruickshank, Cathy McDouall, Georgia Martin , Mandy Morris and Avia Sebasio~Ong.
On Wednesday January 10 at 7pm there is another double bill of film with conversation. Richard Mordaunt and Michael Balson, followed by James Ricketson and David Bradbury.
On Thursday January 11 at 7.30pm, Michael Sharmon and Sandra Leung Waters present their cabaret You By My Side with supporting acts Bianca Wildwood and Dr Fred Cole.
Friday 12 January will see a special free screening at 11am of filmmaker Claude Gonzalez’s, The Ballad of Edgar and Mary, a stage production written for the centenary celebrations of the Drill Hall.
At 7pm there is another double bill with Claude Gonzalez’s documentary Sydney at War: The Untold Story Narrated by the Drill Hall’s late patron Tony Barry. This will be followed by Gonzalez’s latest film, John Farrow, Hollywood’s Man in the Shadows.
On Saturday January 13, Gyan presents Kiss & Tell, song conversations. A concert weaving stories of Gyan’s life and music.
On the final day of the season, Sunday January 14, there will be a morning of free events.
At 11am The Eldershaw Chronicles launch of Stephen Edgar’s verse play where you can meet the creatives and the cast.
At noon Already an Angel – an archived comical video performance by the late Michael Borenstein, past President of the DHTC and a dear friend. Followed by the unveiling of a photograph of Michael by his lifetime sweetheart and wife, Sonia.
On Sunday evening from 7pm there will be the Divine Cabaret – a grand finale to a season of theatrical wonders. Divine Cabaret is a mesmerizing production featuring a stellar cast of six. As the curtains fall on a tapestry of diverse performances, this ensemble takes centre stage with a dazzling display of song, dance and charisma.
50 artists and free events
Too Young To Be Angels features 50 artists, free events, and is curated by Gregory Aitken and Sunita Bailey.
Tickets for all evening Angel’s shows are $28.
James Ricketson’s film Sleeping in Cambodia and stage show, Risky Business, will be presented on Saturday from 7pm.
Tickets for this event, the opening event with jazz ensemble Maroon on Friday, and all of the other events, can be found at: trybooking.com/eventlist/drillhalltheatre.
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