|
 From Gulf News , October 2007
Rogues & Vagabonds Wandering Players have returned from a “short but delightful” tour to Norfolk Island.
The group have been taking part in the Norfolk Island Theatre Festival, premiering their new original piece Silent Stages. Alan Knight says that the Norfolk Island Festival was “just what we had in mind” when Rogues & Vagabonds was formed. “Big, full cast local productions are rewarding, but Rogues & Vagabonds is first and foremost a touring company. “Our main emphasis is on easily toured original works with small casts and minimal staging and costume requirements.” Silent Stages, with a cast of three and a support crew of one, certainly fits the bill. It is made up of two one-act plays, "Dark Night" and "Pack Out", linked by a common theme. The Norfolk Island festival, now in its 10th year, attracts performing groups from all over Australasia. “It’s serious stuff, very focused, the standard is excellent." The Festival’s emphasis was on hard-hitting, mostly contemporary, short dramas, although Silent Stages was one of only two original works. “There wasn’t really any fluffy light comedy…it was all challenging, really dramatic stuff." Despite this, the Festival played to full houses every night. “It was amazing. To get that kind of response in many other places, you’d have to be doing something a lot more mainstream, musical comedy or pantomime." Rogues & Vagabonds weren’t sure, when they started out, how this excursion would go. They had “decided to make life a bit more difficult” by taking a play that has not had a prior opening season. “We went in cold with this one. We decided at the outset that we weren't doing a Waiheke performance of Silent Stages, so, except for a one-off private premiere in front of a handful of our closest friends, it had never been performed before. “It was a new and terrifying experience walking out in front of a crowded theatre when you don’t know even one person in the audience.” However, the company was delighted with the enthusiastic reception the play received. Alan Knight's poignant and understated script was commended for its fresh re-writing of the conventional ghost story. "There were a lot of theatre people out there, and it's a play about how theatres die. Judging from the audience feedback, it struck a few familiar chords." The energy and focus of actor Kate Loughmane's performance also impressed. “It’s been a great adventure. The organisers were fantastic, the theatre itself is brilliant –it's well laid out, well resourced, well supported. “We got to perform in front of very enthusiastic full houses in the evenings and spend our days touring the island and swimming around the coral reef getting all excited about fish. “It was great to see, great to be part of.”
|
