1

PROJECT OVERVIEW HART is a one-man verbatim theatre show that uses testimonials from survivors of the Stolen Generations to illuminate the ongoing after-effects and inter-generational cycle of trauma experienced by Indigenous Australians. Creator/performer Ian Michael and co-writer/dramaturg Seanna van Helten developed the script based on online testimonials and interviews they conducted with four Noongar (Western Australia) men spanning three generations, including Ian himself. The show is intimate, warm and often very funny, inviting audiences to listen in on Australia’s silenced stories and deepen their understanding of a difficult and harrowing part of our history. GENERAL INFORMATION AND PROJECT HISTORY Performance History/Upcoming Seasons

18 Sept-3 Oct 2015 Melbourne Fringe, Melbourne VIC 16 January 2016 Wominjeka Festival/Footscray Community Arts Centre, Melbourne VIC

26 January 2016 Schoolhouse Studios, Melbourne VIC 2-6 February 2016 Basement Theatre, Auckland NZ 20-24 February 2016 BATS Theatre/NZ Fringe, Wellington NZ 2-13 March 2016 Tandanya Theatre/Adelaide Fringe, Adelaide SA 5 March 2016 Institute Theatre/Desert Fringe, Port Augusta SA 24 May-11 June 2016 The Blue Room Theatre, Perth WA 13-17 September 2016 Brisbane Festival - Theatre Republic, QLD

22 Sept-2 Oct 2016 Melbourne Fringe/La Mama Courthouse, Melbourne VIC

Awards

Adelaide Fringe 2016 Best Emerging Artist (Ian Michael) Melbourne Fringe 2015 Best Emerging Indigenous Artist (Ian Michael)

Melbourne Fringe 2015 Tiki Tour Ready Award (NZ Fringe) Melbourne Fringe 2015 SA Tour Ready Award (Adelaide Fringe) Adelaide Fringe 2016 Weekly Award for Theatre Adelaide Fringe 2016 Weekly Award for Best Emerging Artist Nomination: Green Room Award 2015 Best Production-Independent Theatre Nomination: New Zealand Fringe 2016 Outstanding Performer (Ian Michael) Nomination: New Zealand Fringe 2016 Most Promising Emerging Company

Online www.shesaidtheatre.com/hart www.facebook.com/shesaidtheatre www.twitter.com/she said_theatre www.instagram.com/she said_theatre

2

Video Link https://vimeo.com/173598159 Password: hart2016

Images Links

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0BzG5xF9Bn7PyTnNrT01pczV0eE0See For usage, please see ‘High Quality Images’ below.

3

MARKETING COPY Billing HART Presented by She Said Theatre

OR [Presenter name] presents HART by She Said Theatre Credits Concept & Performed by Ian Michael

Text by Ian Michael and Seanna van Helten Directed by Penny Harpham Composition & Sound Design by Raya Slavin Set & Costume Design by Chloe Greaves Lighting Design by Katie Sfetkidis AV Design by Michael Carmody Producer & Tour Management by Anna Kennedy Production & Stage Management by Tonie-Rayne Steele Photography by Gabi Briggs

Acknowledgements

Supported by MAYSAR, Ilbijerri Theatre, Footscray Community Arts Centre and Auspicious Arts

60-word copy

Throughout Australia’s history, an unknown number of Indigenous children have been forcibly removed from their families. Parents driven mad, grandparents heartbroken, siblings torn apart, language lost, culture stripped away.

Using testimonials from the Stolen Generations, Melbourne Fringe and Adelaide Fringe award-winner and Noongar man Ian Michael invites you to listen in on the silenced stories of this country.

160-word copy

“I was always like, like a magnet with my Dad, like everywhere he went I was right next to him… He never got rid of me...”

Throughout Australia’s history, an unknown number of Indigenous children have been forcibly removed from their families. Parents driven mad, grandparents heartbroken, siblings torn apart, language lost, and culture stripped away.

Using testimonials from the Stolen Generations, Noongar man Ian Michael invites you to listen in on the silenced stories of this country.

4

Winner of Best Emerging Artist (Adelaide Fringe 2016) Winner of Best Emerging Indigenous Artist (Melbourne Fringe 2015) Winner of SA Tour Ready Award (Melbourne Fringe 2015) Winner of Tiki Tour Ready Award (Melbourne Fringe 2015) "A brave and quietly devastating performance... Moving theatre that handles some emotionally harrowing material with dignity and grace." —The Age

Duration 50 mins Warnings

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander audiences are warned that the content in this production may contain images and references to deceased persons.

5

HIGH QUALITY IMAGES All images can be found here: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0BzG5xF9Bn7PyTnNrT01pczV0eE0 The above link contains the following:

• Promotional images by Gabi Briggs (2015) • Production images by Julie Zhu (Basement Theatre, Auckland 2015) • Additional promotional/rehearsal images by Misho Baranovic (Arts House,

Melbourne 2015) • Photographs of individuals from the HART team • “Pull-quote” images for use on social media

Please note: All photos must be credited and reviewed by She Said Theatre prior to use. Lead promotional image (Credit: Gabi Briggs)

6

SAMPLE MEDIA RELEASE

For all media enquiries, please contact Anna Kennedy: annakennedy91@gmail.com / 0431 376 678

HART Presented by She Said Theatre, as part of Adelaide Fringe 2016 MARCH 2 - 13 Following a critically acclaimed sell-out season at Melbourne Fringe 2015 and winning the South Australia Tour Ready Award, HART presented by She Said Theatre is coming to Tandanya Theatre for Adelaide Fringe from March 2-13 and Desert Fringe in Port Augusta on March 5.

A verbatim theatre piece, HART examines the difficult and harrowing history of the Stolen Generations from the perspectives of four Noongar men spanning three generations – including performer Ian Michael, who won the Melbourne Fringe Best Emerging Indigenous Artist award for HART.

Michael says, “As a young Indigenous person and performer, it’s vital to be able to tell the stories and the truth from my people. Especially stories of survival and resilience.”

Director Penny Harpham shares Michael’s passion for the project, explaining, “Making HART has been a way for us to educate each other, to keep informed, and to create a considered and highly personal shared experience. She Said, is committed to creating a space for all voices – not just the dominant or the popular – to be heard.”

Before arriving in Adelaide, HART will tour to the Basement Theatre in Auckland and BATS Theatre in Wellington for NZ Fringe this February, also winning the Tiki Tour Ready Award at Melbourne Fringe 2015.

½ “A brave and quietly devastating performance...Moving theatre that handles some emotionally harrowing material with dignity and grace.” —Cameron Woodhead, The Age

“Beautiful, heartbreaking and liberating storytelling… A story about us and now.” —Anne-Marie Peard, AussieTheatre.com Concept & Performed by Ian Michael Text by Ian Michael and Seanna van Helten Directed by Penny Harpham Composition & Sound Design by Raya Slavin Set & Costume Design by Chloe Greaves Lighting Design & Technical Management by Shannah McDonald Production & Tour Management by Anna Kennedy AV Design by Michael Carmody Photography by Gabi Briggs Wed 6.30pm | Thu, Fri, Sat 7.30pm | Sun 4pm | Approximately 55 minutes Tandanya Theatre, 253 Grenfell St, Adelaide SA $25 Full | $15 Concession available via www.lamama.com.au or 03 9347 6142

MEDIA RELEASE Monday, 25 January 2016

7

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY: REVIEW EXCERPTS “No apology can make up for the terrible wrong committed, and the legacy of trauma created, by the policy of removing children with Aboriginal heritage from their families.Hart – a piece of intimate verbatim theatre that gives us an opportunity to listen to members of the stolen generation in their own voices – feels like a more adequate response than any official act. A brave and quietly devastating performance from Noongar man Ian Michael, the show mixes his own story with the memories of three men from Western Australia who lived through the stolen generation era. Their recollections and insights are piercing – from lively details of bush life to traumatic amnesia at the moment of separation; the sorrows of a man whose family was shattered by alcohol, or the torment of a child who wrongly blamed his mother for abandoning him, later to discover that nothing was further from the truth. Michael himself grew up in a different Australia, though one shaped by the past. An actor from the cradle he became the token black kid on a children’s TV show, was vexed he couldn’t be “the Aborigine who colonised Australia” in a school play about the First Fleet, and notes the limited casting options for Indigenous performers in his career since. Augmented by audio-visual montages of private and public history, Hart is moving theatre that handles some emotionally harrowing material with dignity and grace.

– Cameron Woodhead, The Age, September 20, 2015 “HART is beautiful, heartbreaking and liberating storytelling. … Ian Michael tells the stories – including his own – of four Noongar men from, what we call, south-west Western Australia. From interviews with writers (Seanna van Helten and Michael) and testimonies told to the Stolen Generations’ Testimonies Foundation, the four stories are told in the first person. With Michael keeping the same persona, it’s not always clear whose story is being told, and it’s this technique that makes it such an extraordinary telling. Each is so personal – it’s easy to dismiss a generalisation, but much harder to ignore one person’s experience – but their similarities and the discussion of generational trauma and forgiveness make it a story about us and now. HART opens with sound grabs from our politicians. While there are moments of relief and pride, too many cannot see the shame and ignorance in their statements. What do we have to do to get them to see work – “excellent” art – like this? It continues with photos of people whose stories could also be told. The photos flash by so quickly that it’s impossible to really see them. This is frustrating but painfully cries out that there are so many stories that have already been lost. Once told, stories cannot be lost and we have to keep telling them until everyone listens.”

– Anne-Marie Peard, AussieTheatre.com, September 26, 2015

8

“…White audiences may think they understand racist oppression, may think they know about the ravages of alcoholism and joblessness and the enduring scars of the stolen generation, but Michael’s approach shows how generalised that knowledge can be. When he tells how at one mission the children were shut in a dormitory all night, unattended to, and the doors locked from outside, the specifics of the cruelty still creates the power to shock. Even the humour has a tang to it: Michael tells a story about a school Australia Day musical production where the chief role went to a white boy who wasn’t as good a singer as him, because they could hardly have Australia being colonised by an Aboriginal.”

– Owen Richardson, Daily Review, September 29, 2015

“It doesn't take a big stage or a world tour to know that powerful stories are being mined from recent Indigenous history. A modest but affecting one-man show about the Stolen generations, HART, is playing in a small room at Melbourne Fringe. […] In simple prose, it tracks the doleful story of dispossession and institutionalisation that continues to affect so many Indigenous families, even today. But while the history is depressing (some of the action occurs in Western Australia’s infamous Moore River camp), the play itself is warm, big-hearted and often very funny … a poignant and moving piece of theatre, with real-world political implications. Even today, prominent right-wing columnists such as Andrew Bolt continue to maintain that the Stolen Generations did not occur.”

– Ben Eltham, ArtsHub, September 25, 2015 “[T]he time seems ripe for HART, a one-man play which does a great job of personalising mass confusion and heartbreak by presenting fragments of the stories of three Stolen Generation survivors, in their own words. These are small-scale individual histories situated within a large political maelstrom - the show starts with voiceover snippets of real speeches, by turns bigoted, activist and apologetic.

[…] Michael also presents an exploration of his own cultural identity: sometimes he wished, he says, to scrub off the black of his skin. Matter-of-factly, he states that the inter-generational trauma has continued and will continue: it will affect his own children, and his children's children.

In spite of the profound distress being discussed, Michael doesn't load his delivery of simple, spare words with misplaced histrionics. The men he channels could have been more clearly differentiated perhaps, but he is reserved, quiet and dignified; there is no cheap conjuring up of deep-seated emotion for glib edification of an outside audience. Directed by Penny Harpham and co-written by Seanna van Helten, the monologues

9

are nicely punctuated with broader historic film and photo montages – including lines of Aboriginal men shackled by the neck – as well as by gestures which may refer to Michael’s Noongar traditions: he wipes his arms with the white dust which lies in a circle around him on the ground. Startling images and a starting place for discussion.”

– Janet McAllister, NZ Herald, February 4, 2016

“Using a range of historical media Michael creates an audiovisual experience with videos, interviews and photographs that he uses to transport the audience into these traumatic stories. His strong, emotional and versatile performance not only brings the people’s stories to life, but also reaches through the fourth wall so the audience feels involved and emotionally attached to these personal tales.

The set design by Chloe Greaves used a ring of … white dust [that] was not only visually beautiful, dancing in the rays of the spotlights, but it also acted as a reminder of the traditional Aboriginal culture of dance and body painting. Another clever device in the production was the much-needed alteration of lighting, as the characters changed there was a slight but significant variation in the harshness, strength or sequence of the spotlights cast upon Michael enabling a smooth change of characters and stories throughout.

HART is a sad but beautifully told emotional journey, which confronts us with the complex and troubling history of the struggles faced by the Aboriginal people of Australia.”

– Lyndsey Catherine, KeepingUpWithNZ.com, February 3, 2016 “Watching Michael perform I slip away from my seat in the Basement’s studio and am among my friends and those I consider family in Australia; I hear the audience collectively talk-back as Michael speaks, supporting and cheering; I feel the tears slide down the cheeks of women sitting next to men, and hands that slip into mine. I remember the community as the audience are also witnesses; like the performer they too are playing an active part in the ongoing and much larger narrative of centring Indigenous voices and history.

[…] Michael and co-writer Seanna van Helten have created a fluid narrative around the stories of these four men, touching and vivid.... Costume, light and sound design (Chloe Greaves, Shannah McDonald and Raya Slavin respectively) all work easily together; the collective curation is simple and functions well for the space and purpose. Michael Carmody's projection works extremely well as a frame for these vignettes.

HART is a powerful work and Michael is an incredibly talented performer.”

– Dione Joseph, theatreview.org.nz, February 3, 2016

10

“Chloe Greaves’ set is a wonderfully simple yet affective touch, providing Michael with a sense of grounding, community, and play.”

– Matt Baker, TheatreScenes: The Auckland Theatre Blog, February 3, 2016

“Towards the start of the performance, Michael breaks character to elaborate on HART’s content. An unconventional move, this gamble pays off, with his short speech adding to the intimacy of the show. HART is unique in that it is entirely verbatim, “every word that’s said on stage came from one of these men”. In this introduction Michael explains that HART features four testimonies of victims of the stolen generation, and while at times these characters may be hard to differentiate from each other, that is okay. The actor refers to this “confusion” as an essential element of the play. Confusion is what defined these experiences, and thus is part of the story. Michael’s guidance proves helpful, as the audience is then able to enjoy and digest the show without concerns of mistaken identities. Confusion is certainly a main theme to HART, with it both growing and dissipating throughout the show. Yet despite the disconnect of certain stories, the testimonies work together, as “these men were all taken away under the same policy and experienced/still experience dispossession, loss of family, identity/culture, love, childhood, life in institutions, trauma”. This confusion component is aided by the clever set design of Chloe Greaves. Brilliantly simple, Michael performs his monologues within the confines of a flour circle. The testimonies of HART span over 75 years, thus it is primarily shared emotions that connect them. In this sense the stories are circular, as “there is no ending to the trauma of” them. The cream-coloured starch seemed to have its own energy throughout the show; appearing to me in multiple forms, predominantly as the identity struggle many modern Indigenous Australians face, and also as a physical portrayal of disappearing memories.”

– Rebekah Philson, What’s Good Blog NZ, February 4, 2016

“The words used by solo performer Ian Michael – a Noongar man from Western Australia and graduate of the WA Academy of Performing Arts – are the verbatim testimonies of ‘stolen generation' survivors Sam Dinah, Paul Parfitt and ‘Hart' (name changed to respect his privacy), and his own perspective, edited into this performance text by himself and co-writer Seanna van Helten. […] It’s a surprise that the first words Michael utters live are upbeat and lively, recalling a childhood in a mudbrick house in the middle of a paddock, the smells of

11

the shearing shed and the delights of the farmer's wife's cooking. This man was born in '63. And is it he whose great great grandfather was the captain of a ship that arrive in Albany; whose “life was really good before things changed”? At some point Michael has switched to the testimony of someone who was “given an age by the government” and thinks he was about three and a half when the Welfare came and got him in 1954. When Ian Michael introduces himself and pays his respects, he tells us we will be confused by these stories that date from the early 1930s to today but that's all right because it's a play about confusion. What follows is heartfelt and compelling in its unavoidable authenticity: an impressionistic representation of countless lives which reverberate with endless repercussions that resonate enough in even the most privileged life to command our empathy. That said it's also worth noting that HART does not use the ‘channelling voices' device we have been treated to in local verbatim works like The Keys Are In The Margarine and Munted. There we are left in no doubt as to whose story is being shared, leaving us free to empathise fully with those who are speaking. Here Ian Michael's performance persona is the conduit for all the stories. The flour is theatrically used to denote the attempted ‘whitening' of the aboriginal children – yet at the same time it reminds us of the chalk dust and body paint used in traditional corroboree (not that Michael references such movements at any point). Audio-visual projections also enhance the theatrical experience. But it is the testimonies that have the greatest impact. The policies and practices of the dominant culture hit home with the drafting of ‘stolen' children into Anglican or Protestant, in order to determine where they'll be sent; in the lies told about why they were taken. The fundamental importance of family connections – especially the child-mother and son-father bonds – shine through as common to all human experience. We get insights into the causal chain that brings alcohol into the lives of the dispossessed; the place of sport in giving a young man status; the difficulties faced by a relatively pale-skinned aboriginal actor … The light touch Michael brings to his humour-infused performance ensures the shocking insights have a powerful impact. Rather than attack us with polemic, HART invites us to engage with “what sticks out” for each of us, individually. Then his final statement, about individuals and communities, affirms the value of our bearing witness together. Lest we feel “the wrongs of the past” have been “righted”, a programme note is the next wake-up call. Director Penny Harpham reveals how shocked they were, during their research, to discover that “the rate of Indigenous children being taken out of their families and put ‘in care' today is actually higher than it was decades ago … [The number] has increased by 65%, with a staggering 35% of all Australian

12

children in care coming from Indigenous families – despite the fact that Indigenous children comprise only 4.4% of the national child population.” When we see right now how the dynamics of populist politics are subverting the principles of democratic rights and responsibilities at home and abroad, it's hard to have faith in a fair and just outcome. HART leaves us with that crucial question: do we put our belief in individuals or the community?”

– John Smythe, theatreview.org.nz, February 21, 2016 “Sombre, funny, uplifting and deeply sad, HART is a short, and perfectly formed play that tells you the history of the lucky country's dark underbelly and historical wrong-doings. It is a must see this Fringe Festival. [�] From tales of the young taken from their parents to young men struggling to understand whether or not their parents truly loved them, Michael tells each story with an honest and moving sense of urgency. He changes personality swiftly and silently, one moment being a kid from the outback small town and the next to a jock and then next back to himself. Michael, who speaks out as himself towards the end of the play, notes the irony of being too light as a part aboriginal to play a dark skinned person as an actor, but too dark to be a light skinned person. Over time, he coats himself in chalk, making himself whiter and whiter. As the stories go on, they blend into one another, layering, deliberately to confuse us. As Michael notes - these are confusing stories from a confused generation. This bold step of mixing narratives and leaving the audience to catch up shouldn't work. But somehow it does. The mixing acts as a delicate cocktail, blending the many, fractured emotions, than define a man. The harrowing sadness. The outward courage and popularity through sports. The blame. The guilt. The anger. The difficulty of moving away from the past. One of the most moving moments is where one of the characters reflects on his father's death. "He was my world. He still is" Michael says reminding us that the grief and pain do not end with someone's life.

HART may be a story of the worst of human kind but it is one we all need to know. He or she who does not know his or her history, as the saying goes, is doomed to repeat it. Michael fearlessly brings his own history to the fore and using a minimalistic black and while stage, breathes colour, character and hope into their stories – the stories that need to be heard.”

– Lucy Revill, The Residents Wellington, February 21, 2016

“There is a ring of white in the middle of the stage. A man stands inside it, slightly to the side. In the dark we listen to politicians and radio hosts discuss Indigenous Australians. Taken from their families ‘for their own good’, ‘to save them from themselves’. A lone voice offers an apology.

13

The sobering beginning is in contrast to the rest of the show which is often playful and light. Performer Ian Michael invites us to ‘listen for what sticks out’ and tells us that the verbatim stories come from four Noongar men. At one stage he says ‘Trauma goes through generations’ so I like the fact that it’s difficult to tell the individual recollections apart sometimes. They love their Mums, they feel disconnected from their culture, they’re trying to live the best life they can, and their stories are scattered over decades. There are definitely horrifying stories yet positive events are equally celebrated. The effects of the Stolen Generation continues to echo in the present. This is a fascinating show that presents a history not often seen on stage.”

– Wellingtonista, February 22, 2016 “Developed and performed by Noongar Aboriginal actor Ian Michael, these are the stories of Australia’s ‘stolen generation’. As he explains at the beginning, the show features the verbatim stories of four men through three generations that were part of Australia’s ‘stolen generation’ which, as presented, could become confusing, but that this is intentional as it is an essential element of the show and defines much of what these men experienced. And while it’s not always clear which man he is referring to in which generation, in the end it doesn't matter, as the outcome for each is the same; the forcible removal from their families into institutions or foster homes on the pretext that it was ‘for their own good’. And although the show is factual in every detail, Michael’s narrative style, coupled with his own experiences, makes it very personal and removes it from a documentary-style presentation. There is a deep sense of commitment from Michael, as he confidently animates his tales that have both humour and poignancy.”

– Ewen Coleman, The Dominion Post, February 22, 2016 “We believe in community and family and that’s what drives me,” says the sole actor Ian Michael at the denouement of a beautifully researched and crafted 50 minutes of voices from the stolen generation. It’s very good and it’s very sad… HART strives gamely to ensure the past is not another country.”

– Richard Evans, The Advertiser, March 3, 2016

14

“This is a verbatim-theatre work for which Ian Michael and co-writer Seanna van Helten have researched stories as told by four men to the Stolen Generations’ Testimonies Foundation. They interviewed two of them about their experiences and, with permission to adapt the stories, they have created a powerful show. Michael is an entertaining and engaging performer with plenty of energy. He delivers his monologues with sincerity and integrity, vividly bringing the four men’s stories to life.

The set at Tandanya Theatre is simple, consisting of a hand-drawn white circle on the floor, reflected in a projection upstage. A screen displays graphic black and white photos of Aboriginal slavery and oppression, films of children on missions and the Aboriginal flag. Michael cleverly integrates his experiences as a Noongar man from Western Australia with the stories of the Stolen Generation, so we hear of a man who felt isolated from his family; a man who feels that nothing can compensate for the loss of a father, siblings and community, and a man who is rejected for not being dark enough for one society and too dark for another. Our society tends to worship the individual, especially the successful, celebrity individual, whereas Michael makes clear that the traditional Aboriginal community emphasised the importance of community over an individual. The stories are powerful, the storyteller is skillful and the breaking of the floor circle suggests the breaking of community. Although he breaks the circle, Michael simultaneously covers himself in white, creating a clear metaphor that he is a modern Noongar man with his roots in traditional Aboriginal society which is a connection that cannot be undone.”

– Greg Elliot, InDaily Adelaide, March 3, 2016 “Michael’s and co-writer Seanna van Helten’s text is respectfully and beautifully crafted. In performance, Michael is so strong, so true, so giving and spiritually honest. He marries his experiences and those whose lives of which he tells with a sense of the common value of family shared by all. There is no hate. There is anger-tempered sadness – as there should be. There is hope as well, and above all, an invitation for his family, his community to be at one with ours as we can together heal the wounds of this shameful time in history not yet fully dealt with.”

– David O’Brien, The Barefoot Review, March 5, 2016 “A man stands alone beside a chair, inside a ring of white powder. Excerpts from political speeches, radio shock jocks and journalists are played, juxtaposing Rudd's

15

"Sorry" speech with the racist views and policies of white Australia. When the man begins to speak, we realise that we are in for one powerful performance. In this impressive original play by She Said Theatre, the stories of four Noongar men are shared, verbatim, as they reflect on their experience of the Stolen Generation.The stories mix and meld, but there are four distinct personalities here. Four lives amongst so many that have been impacted over decades by the policies of successive Australian Governments. […] When the team started on this project, Abbott was referring to remote communities as a "lifestyle choice". Adam Goodes was being booed on the football field. And a report was released showing that the number of Aboriginal children in care has risen by 65% since the 2008 National Apology. In other words, it is more important now than ever that these stories are told – and heard. This show is a part of that conversation. Its power is not just in the stories themselves, but in how expertly the show has been put together. Multiple layers of this show are seamlessly interwoven into one another, from the costuming, to the dynamic set, and to the expertly-curated sound bites and photographs. This is one of the most important pieces of Australian theatre I have seen in a long time, and it has a rising talent in the form of Ian Michael. Please, go and see HART. You won’t forget it.”

– Jen St Jack, Great Scott!, March 7, 2016 ★★★★★

“Given the damage caused and the desolation endured in the lives of these men, it’s a considerable achievement that Michael and his collaborator, Seanna van Helten, have found so much joy among the pain in these stories, drawn from interviews they made with the characters or provided by the Stolen Generations’ Testimonies Foundation. Sam Dinah, Paul Parfitt and “Hart” (his privacy has been protected with the nickname) have stories stretching back to the 1930s; Michael himself, a proud Noongar man, is the last of the four and brings us up to the present day. Their mums and dads, brothers, sisters and cousins people their stories with memories of happy days and shocking injustices. We’ve now heard many stories from the stolen generation, but these come through as clearly and directly as any ever have. Michael gives a wonderful, controlled performance, moving from gentle remembrances to white-hot anger with perfect control. He is given great support by his director, Penny Harpham, designer Chloe Greaves, sound designer Raya Slavin and lighting designer Katie Sfetkidis.

16

Between them they have created a moving, enlightening and entertaining work that is an important addition to our understanding of these terrible events. I hope you are able to see it.

– David Zampatti, The West Australian, May 26, 2016 ★★★★½ “Hart puts necessary focus on the injustices of the past, highlighting the ignorance, prejudice and exclusion displayed by white Australia even today, and one hopes this opens the door even wider for new directions in the future, as the cycle of trauma has a strong and just hold and such harsh reality cannot be real for much longer. Beautifully written and relayed, but there is room for even more HART.” – Victoria Wyatt, Arts Hub, May 30, 2016 “You’d be forgiven that thinking that Hart would be heavy going and di"icult viewing, and sure enough a play about the Stolen Generation is not always cheeriest way to spend an hour, images of Indigenous australians in chains and a litany of chilling vox pops for politicians ensured that. Yet it is perhaps necessary viewing. Michael and his team have presented these interviews and testimonials in a way, that don’t seem didactic or “preachy”. Rather they highlight the complexity of the situation; but also highlight some of the more joyful moments in these individuals’ lives – whether it be making it onto a televised ad with GWN’s Doopa Dog or playing footy. Michael, van Helten and the interviewees have revealed the human face and voice behind an issue that is too often talked about only in terms of statistics. Michael proved to a charismatic host, leading the audience through the stories of four Indigenous men (his included), each from different generations, stretching back to 1930. There were similarities despite the shifts in time and naturally differences, but one of the constants that struck me most powerfully was the isolation these generations had to endure. These men were removed from their traditions and their culture, unable to return to that world because of it, but also equally unwelcome in the world of “white” Australia. An “isolation” that was neatly emphasised by Michael’s anecdote about auditioning for acting roles – too light skinned for indigenous roles, too indigenous for other roles. Hart doesn’t provide the answers, rather it is an acknowledgement that to move forward that we must move forward as one community…” – Simon Clark, The AU Review, May 31, 2016 “Michael is a phenomenal performer. The audience hangs on his every word. His delivery is humorous and filled with pathos – his very mannerisms and quiet, regretful tone brings the audience to tears, and rightly so. Hart isn’t about making

17

you cry or laugh – it’s about making you feel. It’s giving a voice to a generation and race that have been silenced and still are today. It highlights the way we were and how we haven’t really changed that much. As a reviewer, I have seen many shows, but Hart was the first time I experienced, and was part of, a standing ovation. It was well deserved – brilliantly written, flawlessly performed, and wonderfully touching, Hart is the show everyone needs to see.” – Laura Money, The Australia Times, May 31, 2016

18

ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES She Said Theatre

She Said Theatre uses performance to explore alternative histories, re-imagine forgotten stories, and encourage a theatrical dialogue with the unheard voices in Australian society. Founded as a direct response to the lack of women in theatre, we aim to create more active roles for women and other under-represented artists in the performing arts, and provide opportunities for such artists to realise their skills in acting, directing, writing and design. We have developed a process of working that focuses on emotional truth and the power of live performance, creating text-based theatre from the “ground up” that is dynamic, immediate, and experientially engaging, that activates young, culturally and geographically diverse audiences outside the usual theatre-going demographic. Currently based in Melbourne, Australia, She Said Theatre was founded in 2006 by co-Artistic Directors Penny Harpham and Seanna van Helten. In 2015 they appointed Creative Producer Anna Kennedy, and regular collaborators Raya Slavin and Ian Michael became Resident Artists.

Ian Michael (Performer/Co-Writer)

Ian Michael graduated from WAAPA in 2008. His theatre credits include HART (Melbourne Fringe), Flashblacks, Northwest of Nowhere, Big Day Out, Black Writers Lab (Ilbijerri Theatre Company); Blak Cabaret (Malthouse Theatre); The Kid (MTC/ Melbourne Ring Cycle); Laika and Wills (She Said Theatre/Melbourne Fringe); The New Black (The Arts Centre-Carnegie 18 series); Jandamarra (Bunuba Films). Film credits include Where are the Warriors (Wirrim Films); Needle (Nexus 6 Films). Ian was the Assistant Director of Casting Doubts at WAAPA in 2010. At WAAPA, Ian played the lead roles in Blackrock, Gunjies and In Our Town, as well as the short film Project Petey DNA which had success at the Toronto imagineNATIVE Festival, St Kilda Film Festival, Winnipeg Aboriginal Film Festival and Dungog Film Festival. He is a proud Noongar man from Western Australia. In 2013 and 2015 Ian was awarded the Outstanding Indigenous Artist/Best Emerging Indigenous Artist award for Laika and Wills and HART respectively.

Penny Harpham (Director)

Penny Harpham is the co-founder and co-Artistic Director of She Said Theatre. She has worked across Australia, South Korea, Germany and the UK as a director and performer. She recently graduated from the Victorian College of the Arts (Post Grad in Performance Creation – Directing) where she was awarded the Barbara Manning Scholarship for Excellence and the Global Atelier Scholarship for Overseas Travel. In 2013 she won a Green Room Award for The Stream/ The Boat/ The Shore/ The Bridge (Next Wave Festival 2012) and in 2015 she was a recipient of the Ian Potter Cultural Trust Award which helped her complete a residency at the ZK/U in Berlin and an internship with TheaterRampe in Stuttgart. Her directing credits include

19

HART, Bock Kills Her Father (She Said Theatre/La Mama), Slut (VCA One Act Play Season), Laika and Wills, and Breaking (She Said Theatre for Melbourne Fringe). She has performed with She Said Theatre, Elbow Room, Brisbane Powerhouse, Motherboard Productions/ Theatreworks, Stella Electrika/La Mama and Queensland Shakespeare Ensemble.

Seanna van Helten (Co-Writer/Dramaturg) Seanna van Helten is a writer, researcher, dramaturg and Artistic Director of She Said Theatre. Writing credits with She Said include the award-winning HART (Melbourne Fringe 2015/Basement Theatre 2016/NZ Fringe 2016/Adelaide Fringe 2016/ The Blue Room Theatre 2016), Laika and Wills (Melbourne Fringe 2013), and Breaking (co-authored by Penny Harpham, Melbourne Fringe 2012). For the company, Seanna is currently developing Salt, supported by Lonely Company, and Fallen, which was recently selected for Playwriting Australia’s National Script Workshop 2016. Since the founding of She Said in 2006, Seanna has also worked as a dramaturg, writer, and producer, and has participated in creative developments at Darebin Speakeasy, Metro Arts, Arts House, and the Abbotsford Convent. Seanna has published creative writing in the Griffith REVIEW and Voiceworks, has contributed as an arts writer to Milk Bar Mag, and is the former Arts Editor of Brisbane’s Rave Magazine. In 2014, she completed the Master of Writing for Performance at the Victorian College of the Arts, under Raimondo Cortese. She is a recipient of the Australia Council’s ArtStart development grant.

Anna Kennedy (Producer/Tour Manager)

Anna Kennedy is a Melbourne-based actor, theatre-maker and Creative Producer of She Said Theatre. She has produced HART for tours to Auckland, Wellington, Adelaide and Perth in 2016. Most recently she performed in A Room of One’s Own at La Mama, Steppe for Melbourne Fringe, and The Living Museum of Erotic Women presented by Bernzerk Productions. In 2015 she co-created and performed in Since the Death of Sarah Kane with Adam J. A. Cass at La Mama, produced four shows in a Darebin Arts/VCA graduates collaboration, FR!SK at True North Arts Festival and produced/performed in a collaboration between VCA graduates and Living Positive Victoria for their ENUF Stigma Campaign. Anna graduated from VCA with a BA of Fine Arts (Theatre Practice) in 2014. At VCA she devised and performed in Lucky Country for MFF, Plus Sign Attached directed by Maude Davey and The GL*RY Project directed by Alyson Campbell.

Raya Slavin (Sound Designer/Composer) Raya Slavin is a composer and sound designer working across multi-disciplinary art practices and is the resident composer/sound designer for She Said Theatre. Recent work includes Ryan (Dir. Daniel Lammin, La Mama), Birdcage Thursdays (La Mama/Big West Festival), Myth Project – Twin (with Kelly Ryall, Neon Festival at Melbourne Theatre Company), Angry SEXX (Melbourne Fringe), Slut (VCA Directors Season), Laika and Wills

20

(Melbourne Fringe), Savages (with Kelly Ryall) and MKA Group Show (Darebin Speakeasy). Throughout 2013, Raya worked as sound associate for Kelly Ryall and Russell Goldsmith on projects with KAGE, Bell Shakespeare, The Hayloft Project, fortyfive downstairs and The Public Studio. Raya was recently nominated for a 2015 Green Room Award for her sound design for Ryan.

Chloe Greaves (Set & Costume Designer)

Recent costume designs include The Bacchae (Fraught Outfit/Melbourne Festival), The Grumpiest Boy in the World (Victorian Opera), They Saw A Thylacine (Malthouse Theatre), The Waiting Room (Melbourne Theatre Company), Blak Cabaret (Sydney Festival/ Malthouse Theatre), The Magic Pudding (Victorian Opera), On the bodily Education… (Fraught Outfit / MTC Neon), Le Donna Curiose (The Juliard School, New York), Project Hysteria (Poppy Seed festival) Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth and A Midsummer Nights Dream (Essential Theatre), and Pacific Overtures (Watch This Productions). Chloe also works in film and television, and has designed music videos for artists including Guy Sebastian, San Cisco, Montaigne, Dz Deathrays and Alison Wonderland. Chloe received the 2014 Independent Theatre Green Room Award for her body of work, and has been nominated for five others.

Katie Sfetkidis (Lighting Designer) Katie Sfetkidis is a Melbourne-based lighting designer and member of Little Ones Theatre. She won a Green Room Award for Best Lighting Design - Companies in 2015 and has 5 other nominations. This is her first show with She Said Theatre. Credits include: Malthouse Theatre: Meme Girls, Calpurnia Descending (Sisters Grimm /Sydney Theatre Company), Tame; Belvoir Theatre: Kill the Messenger; Little Ones Theatre: Dracula; Dangerous Liaisons; The House of Yes; Salomé; Pyscho Beach Party, Home Economics; Aphids: A Singular Phenomenon; Field Theory: Mass (Zoe Scoglio); Sisters Grimm: Summertime in the Garden of Eden, The Sovereign Wife, Little Mercy; Dirty Pretty Theatre: The Lonely Wolf, Thérèse Raquin, The Bitter Tears of Petra Von Kant, Acts of Deceit, Something Natural but Very Childish; Sydney Chamber Opera: O Mensch!; Exil; Fraught Outfit: Elektra; Melbourne Theatre Company: Happy Ending. As an installation artist she has presented work at FOLA, Underbelly Arts Festival, Brisbane Festival, Lab 14 - Carlton Connect Initiative, Newport Substation, and Blindside Gallery. Katie is currently undertaking a Master in Contemporary Art at the Victorian College of the Arts, Art School.

Michael Carmody (AV Designer)

Michael Carmody (www.vimeo/carmody) has designed video for productions that include Bare Witness (Mari Lourey/Nadja Kostich), I Call My Brothers (MTC), The Waiting Room (MTC), I Saw The Second One Hit (St Martins) Detroit (Red Stitch) and Chapters From The Pandemic (Angus Cerini) for which he received a Green Room nomination. His short films include

21

Debutantes which screened at MIFF 2005 and Carpark which was a finalist at the 2000 National Student Film and Video Festival. In 2013 and 2014 he was filmmaker and video artist on the public art installations Spinning Yarns and The Locker Room, both for the City of Knox. He was also a collaborating artist with Nadja Kostich on the Monash University - Bachelor of Performing Arts: Third Year Production Raid. In 2015 his collaboration with Elissa Goodrich Dusk To Dawn: Devolving screened at the 18th Traverse Video Festival in Toulouse, France and his short film Drowning World screened as part of La Trobe University’s Centre for Creative Arts Nature in the Dark II project.

Tonie-Rayne Steele (Production & Stage Management)

Tonie-Rayne Steele is a theatrical and events manager based in Melbourne. Originally aspiring to be an actor during her high school years things changed when she began volunteering for her local FReeZA group, she later gained a Certificate III in Events Management. This then lead to her work on a variety of events in the Melbourne area including St. Kilda Festival, the 2015 Moomba Parade and the 2015 Asian Cup Opening Ceremony. Tonie-Rayne is now a graduate of the Victorian College of the Arts, having completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Production - Stage Management. Since graduating the course she has stage-managed The Rivers of China (dir. Phil Rouse), production- and stage-managed Saltwater (created. Jamie Lewis) and production-managed for Bock Kills Her Father (dir. Penny Harpham).

Gabi Briggs (Photographer)

Gabi Briggs is a Koori woman from the sovereign Anaiwan and Gumbangier peoples and has been raised on country in Armidale, NSW. She relocated to the unceded lands of the Wurundjeri people where she is currently completing her Bachelor of Fine Arts at RMIT. Gabi works primarily with photography but also works within different mediums such as video and performance. Gabi is a co-editor of the Sovereign Apocalypse zine and is a member of the Tiddas Take Back collective. www.gabibriggs.com