Theatre 180 opened Our Place: Rain or Shine on Friday to a full house, with hundreds of locals turning out to see Albany’s story translated to the stage in the special bicentenary production.
The show played only three performances at the Albany Entertainment Centre over the weekend, but was received by enthusiastic crowds on all three occasions of its limited run.
Our Place: Rain or Shine tells Albany’s story since before European colonisation in 1826, bringing together stories from throughout the city’s history to showcase the varied perspectives and experiences of those who have lived there.
Writer Jenny Davis took on the mammoth task of distilling more than two centuries of history and stories into a show with a run-time of less then two hours, and deftly pulled it off in three distinct acts.
Perhaps the simplest way to get through the abundance of source material would have been to tell the story chronologically, but that is not what Davis has opted for.
Throughout the three acts, Davis weaves together stories from far and wide through the city’s history, creating a tapestry of personal experiences that build layer on layer to form a detailed image of Albany’s identity.
The show is in turns both funny and reflective, bringing the audience along for a jaunty ride through the highlights of Albany’s history without making light of its darker moments.
Leading actors Benj D’Addario, Jo Morris and Tom O’Sullivan create a colourful cast of characters that includes French explorers, Italian immigrants, Scottish tourists, and a host of born-and-bred Albany locals to portray integral moments in Albany’s history from the construction of the Desert Mounted Corps memorial on Mt Clarence to the rescue of captain Ches Stubbs after he lost a leg hunting whales aboard the Cheynes II.
Theatre 180 conducted more than 100 interviews over about three years to find the stories they would use in the show, and the company’s signature blend of theatre performance and on-screen cinematography allowed even more of these stories to be included in the final production.
The final scene swings the focus back to the Menang people with an appearance from beloved Menang educator Larry Blight.
Framed by the Ngallak Koort Boodja canvas, which was lent to Theatre 180 especially for the production, Blight takes to the stage alongside the key cast and the Kalyagul Cultural Dancers to tell his own story of what Albany means to him and to his people.
With the awe and enthusiasm he is so well-known for, Blight talks about the native flora and fauna that inhabit his country, and the importance of everyone who calls it home taking on the responsibility of caring for it into the future, ending the show on a note that perfectly captures how Albany has recognised the history behind its bicentennial year.
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