Merrigong Theatre Company presents Sydney Theatre Company and Moogahlin Performing Arts’s The Visitors by Muruwari playwright Jane Harrison, at Illawarra Performing Arts Centre from 25th to 28th of October. This moving but humorous show turns back time, taking you to one of the most significant moments in this country’s history. This award-winning show tells the story of 7 elders on January 26th 1788 as the first fleet approached the Eastern coast of Australia.
The Visitors is a deeply researched insight into one of Australia’s most impactful and painful days, letting us in to see first-hand the community’s decision making toward the unknown and leaving us pondering alternate histories and realities.
The Visitors features an all-star cast, including Joseph Wunujaka Althouse (Hayes Theatres’ The Lucky Country), Luke Carroll (Belvoir’s At What Cost?), Elaine Crombie (STC’s The 7 Stages of Grieving), Kyle Morrison (Bell Shakespeare’s Macbeth), Guy Simon (Griffin’s Whitefella Yella Tree), Beau Dean Riley Smith (QTC’s Sunshine Super Girl), and Dalara Williams (TV’s The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart).
Simon Hinton, Merrigong Theatre Company’s Artistic Director and CEO, said, “The Visitors is one of the most important pieces of Australian theatre of the last few years, and it’s fantastic for Wollongong audiences to be able to see it. At a time when we are as a nation reflecting on the last 235 troubled years of our history, this is an incisive, clever, witty, reflection on the moment in 1788 when everything changed for Aboriginal people, but above everything it is great theatre.”
I had the chance to speak to Muruwari playwright Jane Harrison about the show. Here’s what I found out.
SERENA: Could you start by giving us an outline of the show and what happens in terms of a storyline?
JANE: Sure. It’s set in 1788 on January 26 but it’s quite a contemporary story and it tells of the gathering of 7 elders from nearby tribes in the Sydney region who gather to decide what their response will be to the gathering of the first fleet. Whether they want to shoo them away or allow them to land and obviously have to welcome them. There’s a lot of debate that happens throughout the course of the day until they come to their unanimous decision.
SERENA: The show is a moving first-nations storytelling piece. Outside of this, what kind of genre would you describe the show to be? What feelings do you reckon it inspires in the audience?
JANE: There’s actually a lot of humour in the show which often in first-nations storytelling people might be surprised about that. A play that’s really about colonisation that has humour in it. And, it’s also poignant – it makes you feel – you go on a journey with these characters as they talk and debate about their own connection to country and why these people won’t stay – because the lure of your own country is too great. They should be home looking after their own country so why would they stay? They’re sort of making decisions based on their own values and beliefs and ultimately decide that they will be gracious and magnanimous and welcome them to country. So, it’s quite moving at the end when they do that. So, it stands out to the audience.
SERENA: I’m aware that the show had an award-winning premiere at the 2020 Sydney Festival and was then reworked as a brand-new production. Could you give a few more details on this. Why was the show reworked and how and why does it differ from the original?
JANE: So, it is quite different from the original. I think they treaded in first-nations language particularly at the beginning of the show. Through it they worked with a couple of first-nation Dharug consultants and so they were able to start in language. They also tethered the whole text with language words. This production also has women in the cast whilst the original only had men. So, women are important because they’re naturally leaders in the community and it’s important to have them at the table with this important debate taking place. So, that’s really interesting. But, we didn’t really change much in the story to accommodate the women, they still behave in a similar fashion as through the original storytellers. The set is quite different too. It’s a beautiful sandstone escarpment and it really conjures up feelings of Sydney and the Sydney region. The original was successful and it had an extended season but I think between the new director coming on board and the production with Sydney Theatre Company and Moogahlin was the opportunity to make the script even more relevant than it was.
SERENA: You are best known for your play Stolen which is now a HSC text. Could you talk more about these other texts that you have worked on?
JANE: Well, I’m not that prolific as a playwright. I’ve worked full-time in other jobs while I’ve done my playwriting on the side for many years. But, I was successful in writing Stolen way back in 1998 and it’s actually going to have a new production at the Sydney Theatre Company next year, so that’s nearly 30 years after its premiere. So, it’s a text that has a lot of longevity and also Rainbows End is on the Victoria’s HSC curriculum.
SERENA: Can we expect any of your other texts to be seen on stage soon?
JANE: Yes, Stolen next year. And, I’ve also got a new commission from Sydney Theatre Company so that’ll take a couple of years to get on the stage.
SERENA: Finally, Australia’s The Voice referendum just failed to pass on Saturday. Would you like to expand on this matter regarding the show and if/what the show represents in terms of themes and symbolism for the Indigenous people and non-Indigenous people of Australia?
JANE: Yeah, I feel like the play really demonstrates such a strong act of generosity on behalf of first-nations people – welcoming them to country at the end of the play as they do – and I feel like that generosity wasn’t given back to us in the referendum so it’s a really disappointing result for the many involved. And, I think that the cast were incredibly brave for getting up and telling this story at this point in time when the results were just so disappointing to a lot of first-nations people. So, it’s a real act of bravery and courage to get up and tell this story.
JANE: There’s also the opera version of the show happening from the 18th of October in Melbourne to the 21st. And, there is also a book version of The Visitors.
Visit the Merrigong Theatre Company website to purchase your tickets to see The Visitors here:
For more information on Moogahlin Performing Arts click here:
Photo Credit: Daniel Boud