GRIFFIN ARTIST BLOG

Griffin Artist Card membership is an initiative to increase access to our theatre. This program facilitates the coming together of artists across different disciplines and at different stages of their career. It supports and strengthens a vibrant emerging artist community, as well as acknowledging this community as an important part of the Griffin family and the wider theatre world.

How does it work? We want to offer a place where artists can see work, discuss work and make work.

To see work, we will continue to offer heavily discounted $15 tickets, which can be booked in the first fortnight of all Griffin and Griffin Independent shows, Performance Space shows at members' rates and ticket deals and giveaways to other theatre companies.

To discuss work, we are introducing regular Artist Card events where the community can come together for a drink.

And finally, we are supporting emerging artists in their making of new, bold and exciting work. Griffringe will continue to be a great avenue for artist card holders to display their work. We will also be offering (where possible!) free use of our space for readings and developments.

The Artist Card is a community. It is the glitter glue that brings all the cool amazing arty people together and helps them sparkle. So it's almost like glitter glue squared. If you are interested in joining the artist card outfit, please email artist@griffintheatre.com.au or come along to our next shindig….Hope to see you there!

Posts tagged Augusta Supple

May 13

This is Gus.

ARTIST OF THE WEEK: Q&A WITH AUGUSTA SUPPLE

What are you working on currently?

After just over 2 months of writing and meeting, I’ve just hosted the first reading of a project I’m developing with 10 playwrights called “Write Here, Write Now” (Carolyn Burns, Jasper Marlow, Melita Rowston, Georgia Symons, Grace de Morgan, Luke Carson, James Pike, Melissa Lee Speyer, Guy Birks, Alli Sebastian Wolf).

Currently preparing to work with David Finig on his piece “The World Creates Itself” as a part of subtlenuance’s Bare Boards Brave Hearts in July.

I have a multi-playwright project I am in the process of developing called “A View From Moving Windows”, which is included in Riverside Theatre’s 2012 True West season in October. Writers yet to be announced (or approached, really… yeah, better get on that asap!)

I am dramaturg for Olivia Satchell’s project on the world of internet dating called Heart Dot Com working with Luke Carson, Ellana Costa, Alison Rooke, Jasper Marlow, Katie Pollock scheduled for production in November.

I am directing 7-On Playwright’s pop-up project “Platonic” which is going into development in November at NIDA then into production at the end of the year to celebrate 7-On Playwright’s 7^th Year together. They’re pretty cool: http://sevenon.blogspot.com.au/

I am assisting with the start up of a new development venue in Surry Hills called The Arts Platform. Sama Ky Balson is the Artistic Director, Kirk Page is the Associate Director and I am the Program Director – we’ve been harnessing the creative talents of Sydney theatre community and we’re going to be releasing Expressions of interest and membership details very soon…it’s so new out website isn’t up yet, but it will be soon: http://www.theartsplatform.com/

And the usual stuff for my website – responses and reflections on theatre, arts and culture: www.augustasupple.com

Who, or what, inspires you to create?

Everything around me inspires me: the weather, music, converations I have/conversations I don’t have and wish I had/conversations I overhear, spontaneous lunch time adventures to Cabramatta, art galleries, home made jams and relishes, clouds, the look on the face of the woman scanning my groceries at coles, a man at a bus stop, the rhythm of my walk, 20^th Century poets, American independent film, when I am confronted by someone’s tattoo, the kindness of strangers, 1950s musicals, the architecture of the city, my friends, my foes.

There is a push and a pull in creating. I’m simultaneously running towards and away from something.

I’m running away from boredom, fear, regret and I’m also running toward illumination, reassurance, epiphany, entertainment.

Mostly, I think I am absolutely consumed with the treasure hunt which is new work. I love reading new plays, I love seeing productions of new plays, I love talking with artists and critics and punters about theatre. And it is those conversations that compel me to create.

What was the most interesting thing you saw recently?

I can’t do definitive ultimate….I will list 5 things that caught my attention and made me thing differently this week:

The hands of the plumber I met last Saturday. They were so much older than the rest of him.

The Holy Mountain (1973) by Alejandro Jordorowsky.

A documentary on the history of the castrati.

John McCallum’s Key Note speech at The NSW Writers Centre: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ho3NFzKO_Ag

Marilyn Manson interviewed by David Letterman in 2003 on You Tube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Nc-edAYHH8

Pandan Waffles (see above).

Production wise:

Food by Steve Rodgers/Kate Champion at Belvoir

Lord of the Flies directed by Anthony Skuse at New Theatre

L’Effet de Serge - Philippe Quesne/Vivarium Studio as a part of Sydney Festival 2012

Pygmalian by GB Shaw directed by Peter Evans at Sydney Theatre

Best We Forget devised by isthisyours at The Old Fitzroy Hotel Theatre

What is the best piece of advice that you’ve been given?

“Easiest way to not have post-production blues, just have another project lined up.” – Simon Philips

“Always hire someone who wants your job” – Robin Clifton

“Everything is an act of faith. Breathe” – Kerry Walker

“When working in theatre, it’s good to be a little bit incapable at something so someone who is capable can save the day.” – John Oram

“Take what you need, leave what you don’t” – Barbara Bryce

“Make work for the most intelligent person in the audience.” – Bogdan Koca

“If you can’t be a grand painter, be an expert miniaturist” – Timothy Daly

“Directors should never assume that just because they don’ t know how something will happen/work, doesn’t mean their designers can’t make that happen.” – Stephen Hawker

“Take a holiday.” – James Waites

Who, past or present, would you like to share a meal with and why?

Below is a quick A-Z of people I’d love to eat with – for their conversation and/ or cooking skills, or to simply ask them the questions you have asked me… or just because I think they would/could provoke in me an unstoppable, insatiable idea.

Robyn Archer

Katherine Brisbane

Rex Cramphorn

James Dean

Nick Enright

Margaret Fink

Galileo Galilei

Wayne Harrison

Michal Imielski

Linda Jaivin

Howard Keel

Frank Lloyd-Wright

Marliyn Manson or John McCallum (I can’t choose)

Felicity Nicol

John Oram

Roman Polanski

Philippe Quesne

Eleanor Roosevelt
Paul Simon

Margaret Thatcher

Peter Ustinov

Eddie Vedder

Margaret Wise Brown

Irene Xavier

William Yang

Catherine Zimdahl

What a lady. Keep an eye on Gus as one of our leading artist/blog critics. A tricky hybrid done with great panache by Ms Supple.

May 4

A FEW THOUGHTS (FROM GUS SUPPLE) ON DEVELOPMENT

An apt dove-tail to the PWA Script Workshops is this article written by Augusta Supple on her blog about her thoughts on development and its importance for writers. She writes about the desperate need for a) development in general and b) audience feedback for a piece to have any sort of mature development and how this is difficult in our application-driven theatre culture.

This is a very interesting piece that forms a vital part of the current debate on the importance of creative development and, in Supple’s words, the ‘crisis’ that is new play culture.

Read the full article here.

Apr 26

CRUSHED BY MELITA ROWSTON - SUPPORT INDEPENDENT THEATRE!

World Premiere, presented by Chester Productions, in association with The Spare Room 2012

CRUSHED

BY MELITA ROWSTON

In the summer of 1988, ‘Sunny Girl’ Susie turned sweet sixteen. Her boyfriend Jason gave her a Poison t-shirt, her best friend Kelly gave her a name-necklace, and Kelly’s boyfriend Dazza gave her a handful of pills.

That night Susie Greene disappeared and was never seen again.

Twenty-two years later, the blood splattered t-shirt of the missing schoolgirl is unearthed in the scrub and Jason, Kelly and Dazza are brought back together for the bleakest of high school reunions. As the police uncover more evidence, Susie’s oldest friends are forced to confront their memories of a night they’d hoped to leave buried in their adolescence forever.

Sydney playwright Melita Rowstontakes us on a fast-paced, acerbic Gen X ride that drags the ‘lost child’ of Australian myth into the 21^st century.

NEW THEATRE is thrilled to be presenting this World Premiere as the first production in 2012 for THE SPARE ROOM, our season of

co-productions with leading independent companies.

Directed by Lucinda Gleeson

Producer Jennifer Campbell, for Chester Productions

Set and CostumeDesigner Eliza McLean

Dramaturg Erin Thomas

Cast: Sean Barker, Lucy Miller, Jeremy Waters

SEASON 16 May – 9 June

PERFORMANCES Tuesday – Saturday 8pm, Sunday 5pm

TICKETS $30 full | $25 concession, groups (10+) | $15 previews Wednesday 16 & Thursday 17 May | $17 student rush

Cheap Tuesdays (Pay-What-You-Can $10 min)

BOOKINGS 1300 13 11 88* | NEWTHEATRE.ORG.AU

Guys. Melita is one of our fellow Artist Card-ers. Lets show our support and get along to this great indie show. I saw a reading off this piece way back when Off the Shelf, Augusta Supple’s baby, was still being run at Queen Street. It was brilliant then and I’m sure it is even more brilliant now.

Apr 12

EVERY BREATH - WHAT IS THE PLACE OF FAILURE IN AUSTRALIAN THEATRE?

As you are probably aware, there has been a fire-blazing debate raging around the debacle of Benedict Andrews’ production of Every Breath at Belvoir. I have not seen the show and so will pass no comment here but instead pull out some of the more fascinating debate points that have arisen.

1. An excellent comment was passed by Alison Croggon (inevitably) in response to Augusta Supple’s blog response (which you can read here.)

“I do worry that the major reason given here for lack of interest is that the characters in the play are too different from you for you to be interested in their concerns. Is theatre really a forum for narcissicism? Or is one of its virtues the way it makes an imaginative bridge to possibilities different from ourselves?

I agree that failure is something we have trouble parsing in Australian theatre. There’s sometimes a savagery in the damning of those who fail that suggests an unacknowledged hostility to art itself. If we choose to support art, we take the risk of supporting failure, otherwise that support is meaningless: are we really calling for guaranteed “success”? That way lies the hell of comfortable, conforming theatre. Or is “risk” only “risk” if the gamble wins?”

2. Supple’s comment on our ambivalent relationship with success: the tall poppy syndrome versus our love of/with celebrity (and the question of how does this affect our willingness to take risks and experiment?)

3. A small side note that I very much enjoyed from Jimmy Waites about Sam Strong’s Les Liaisons Dangereuses at STC sitting at the other end of the directorial spectrum: “Opening night it felt like a perfectly bred foal, exquisite if a little overwhelmed that it was now in the world – and I have no doubt, even by now, it high-stepping around the paddock and humans are gawking in delight at its beautiful proportions and confident character.” Can’t wait to see it.

4. I would like to point out that the show has created a unique event in making Jason Blake ropable: “Worse still, Every Breath gives those who think Sydney’s theatre scene is being held hostage by auteur-wankers a clip full of told-you-so ammunition.” Woah now. Read the rest of his article here.

5. Interesting insights are conveyed through an interview with Andrews on the Belvoir website. It turns out Every Breath is not his first play as he also wrote plays during high school and the beginning of uni. Make of that what you will. What I found interesting was his thoughts on what playwriting offered him in contrast to directing:

“It is a great blessing to have started writing plays again. Writing them offers me a more compact, private act of theatre-making than directing. It is a very precise and tender way of listening to the voices inside me and of observing the world around me. Playwriting, like being a director, involves a conversation about the life of the theatre and the theatre of life.”

Read the rest of the interview here.

I have some sneaking suspicion, totally unfounded, that these issues around lack of new work development and vicious backlash to artistic failure have something, whether directly or indirectly, to do with our status as a philanthropic culture (read: that status is very low to the ground). Has our inability to ask for money lead to the reverence of a few celebrity directors, who we bank upon to deliver the goods and who we eviscerate when they fail? If we had more funding, we could have both more support for the development of new work as well as more theatres (heaven forbid!) and thus more avenues for more work to be shown and more artists to practice their craft, thus dissipating our current microscopic hold on this handful of flashy ‘auteurs’.

What is the place of failure in our theatre culture? Do we allow it?

Apr 9

GRIFFRINGER #1: LUKE CARSON

The first Griffringer I caught up with was Luke Carson, an actor and writer who has written a monologue titled ‘Boys’ Night’, which is to be directed by Augusta Supple and performed by Stephen Wilkinson.

“My inspiration for writing this:

Sometimes that big night you look forward to can turn into a complete disaster. Everyone knows what that’s like, a new years eve where you pass out before midnight, a big party that turns into a complete fizzer or that one night you get with your mates when suddenly you feel alone amongst friends thinking about wanting to do something else.

What inspired me to write this was that I wanted to explore what a gambler personally goes through before they actually gamble. I wanted to explore the sights, sounds and smells of a gaming lounge and the mental process of a gambler before they make the choice to gamble. What amazes me is people’s ability to overcome obstacles that seem insurmountable, instead finding the strength within themselves to change what is not working in their life. This piece is not just about addiction but about how someone who has chosen to change their path in life can be challenged by the past.

Why I’m a writer:

I’m a writer because there are stories that I haven’t had an opportunity to tell with my acting this far. When you act you see through your characters eyes and tell the story from their point of view. You live in the world that the author has created telling that specific story. It’s extremely rewarding but you rarely get to tell your side of things. So when I write I can say this is how I, as a person, see the world. This is what stimulates me and gets me angry and makes me laugh. These are the people that need to have words in my world.

What else is on the go:

I’m currently in rehearsals for a production of Hamlet by Harlos Productions. I’m also working on a third draft of my play Second Time Around and am in pre-production of my rap video East Suburbia Gangsta. I’m also taking part in a writing group called Write Here, Write Now being run by Augusta Supple.”

Remember people. Griffringe: The Bold and The Beautiful is going to be on April 22nd from 4pm. $15 for a fab afternoon. 15 DOLLARS! Blow me over that’s cheap.

Mar 14

This is the beginning of an ongoing thread on this blog, which will attempt to explore the benefits of studying to be a creative in a foreign environment. We all have friends who have traveled overseas to study acting, writing, directing, or just to immerse themselves in the international theatre scene. What could be the possible benefits/detriments to this approach?

To kick this investigation off, I had a quick email chat with Alison Rooke, a stunning playwright and one to watch in the local Sydney theatre scene. In the later parts of last year she traveled to the great NYC and took part in the Lark Play Development Centre internship program. Read her fabulous recreation of the internship experience here (she can write, after all).

Here’s what she had to say for herself.

What are you working on currently?

I am working on a new play, ‘The Blackbird and The Whale’ which I started during my time in New York last year. It’s really early days so I’m keeping it close, but I’m excited about the direction it’s taking.

I have a residency later this year with The Lock Up in Newcastle so I have begun sketching out ideas for a new work that I am going to focus on during my time with them in June/July.

I am also about to jump back into the belly of the beast and attempt to finish a novel I have been working on for many, many, many years… it must be finished this year. Must!

Who, or what, inspires you to create?

Lots of things… music plays a huge part in my process, things don’t really start flowing for me until I find the right soundtrack for my characters or scenes. Art, literature, current affairs, myth, history, travel, nature – I am always inspired by the ocean and the tales it has to tell.

My main inspiration though would have to be people. I am endlessly fascinated, terrified, elated, confused and frustrated by human beings and the things we do, say, think and feel.

I especially love exploring what’s not said – the space between, that’s where things get really interesting for me. I guess most people are a mystery to me and I am mesmerized with how we interact with each other, the games we play, the fear and love we can evoke – all great grist for the writing mill.

What was the most interesting thing you saw recently?

Two things … one was a great example of the power of development and the other an illustration of sublime execution on a stage.

I recently spent 3 months in New York working with the Lark Play Development Centre and had the opportunity to attend several readings of new works which inspired and challenged my views on playwriting – it reminded me of the importance and power of simplicity and how crucial it is to give a writer time to find the story. I think sometimes we are so keen to get things produced we rush scripts and writers before they are ready… it taught me to breathe and trust the process.

The other production was The Boys at Griffin, which completely overwhelmed me and reminded me of the importance of finding a director who will tease out a vision of the script that brings it to life. The soundtrack, the lighting, the performances, the set design – everything coalesced into a scorching production that left me shaking for hours after.

What is the best piece of advice that you’ve been given?

I’ve been so lucky to have had some wonderful mentors in my writing-life who have dished out great advice … When I was at NIDA John Romeril gave each of us a ‘writing rule’ that seemed to hit the nail on the head – My one was “Writing is a simple act – all you need is a pencil and paper” – I go back to it constantly. The great Francesca Smith told me to read ‘Bird By Bird’ (Anne Lamott) which has become my touchstone every time the fear overwhelms or the block threatens to loom. Augusta Supple, who gave me my first production after NIDA has always told me to keep writing in my true voice, which isn’t always easy when you are faced with trends and limited opportunities … perhaps though the best piece of advice has come from my wonderful parents who whenever I throw up my arms in despair and declare I am giving it all up to get a ‘real job’, shake their heads furiously and demand that I ‘keep going, keep going!’

Who, past or present, would you like to share a meal with and why?

I would be in writer heaven if I could sit at a table with Samuel Beckett and Sam Shepard, writers that make me sing… but (and this might sound cheesy) I think I would rather sit around a table with the wonderful community of theatre-makers I call my friends. Their passion for their work, their fierce intelligence, the support and encouragement they dish out in spades, the laughter and enthusiasm they exude and the copious amounts of wine they consume would make them by far the most enjoyable dinner guests I could imagine spending time with…

And: How did being in a foreign place, New York, affect you creatively?

New York completely changed everything for me in terms of my creativity… in a weird way it has made me much more relaxed about it all… before I went I was in a serious rut and really feeling like I wasn’t growing as a writer.

Being in NYC, a city I had longed to visit - the frenetic energy, the multitude of choices, the brilliant people I met, the fact that I alone was responsible for my time there and the sheer joy at having 3mths to dedicate to all things writing made it a life-changing experience. I saw some really wonderful (and really average theatre) over there, I felt what it was like to live in a culture where art is considered ‘mainstream’, I gained a new sense of possibility and wonder and I realised that I don’t want to do anything else with my life.

Working at Lark filled me with confidence and excitement again and showed me that all writers start with a blank page, all writers worry about that first draft, all writers fail at times and all writers must persevere… it also gave me a greater appreciation of my own theatre community and the importance of getting back amongst it all once I returned to Sydney. It’s an exciting time to be a writer in this city and I can’t wait to see what’s next in the cards… Although a little bit of my writing heart will always remain in New York.

I’m going to keep in touch with Rooke, and will be searching for other travelers who might share their insight as to what may be gained by learning outside of the creative environment in which you predominantly create.

If you have any ideas or experience around this topic, please do share it.

Mar 9

Theatre Blogging - Response to Belvoir

Belvoir’s forum on Sunday was not as fiery as the audience would have been led to belive whilst milling around in the foyer beforehand. Jane Simmons was not shouted down for her ‘direct’ style, nor was there much debate over the role of theatre blogging in our current cultural landscape (which is what, I think, the forum had originally intended to be about).

Somehow, it ended up being a comparison between print and online criticism, and there was little shouting to boot (none at all, save Chris Taylor’s rant about Baal).

“Please join us for an extra special Sunday Forum dedicated to the current debate within the arts community around the art of cultural blogging. Who speaks for who now, and what’s the process? Has the theatrical landscape changed with the arrival of bloggers?”

None of these questions were explored in any depth.

Credit should be payed to Belvoir for scheduling a forum so topical to the current debates circulating around blogging but it seems to have missed the mark, particularly by failing to invite any established Sydney bloggers, such as Kevin Jackson, James Waites, or Augusta Supple (an omission noted by more than one audience member).

The time that was spent on theatre blogging hinged on Simmons’ newly-found notoriety rather than the implications of the zeitgeist that blogging has become (with Alison Croggon shaking her head quite vigorously whenever Simmons spoke, something that was quite intriguing but which Taylor failed to investigate). Even though Croggon is based in Melbourne, her blog, theatre notes, is well worth following, if only for the quality of her writing and the clearness of her criticism. Check her out here.

Mar 5

OPPORTUNITY FOR PLAYWRIGHTS: Write Here, Write Now

Don’t forget the application deadline is 6pm, March 7th. THAT GIVES YOU 24 HOURS!

“Write Here, Write Now is a dynamic new opportunity for a select group of playwrights seeking to sharpen their writing skills, expand their network and create a new works by “writing on the spot” during a series of workshops.

Headed by new play director/creative producer, Augusta Supple (Brand Spanking New, Stories from the 428, I Contain Multitudes) this is a unique opportunity for writers to explore and develop their writing in a supportive and nurturing environment, with a view of developing work ready for production.

Each fortnight, individual and group exercises will be provided to invigorate and challenge the writers to experiment with form, style and story. They will be provided with dramaturgical feedback and support with the final session dedicated to a small in-house play reading by actors.”

Details
Dates: Mondays (12th & 26th March, 9th April & 23rd April)
Time: 6:30pm - 8:30pm
Venue: Studio 10, Fraser Studios 10-14 Kensington Street, Chippendale
Cost: Free

If you’re interested you can find the application details here.

Mar 2

A little context for the theatre blogging discussion…

Just to get some grasp on what’s involved in the Belvoir forum on this Sunday (at 3pm), some sense of the recent windstorm that has blustered up over theatre blogging, check out Gus Supple’s post about those who were included/excluded on the panel of speakers.

You can still book tickets on the Belvoir website. It’s free. Should be interesting.

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