2011 Productions

Welcome Aboard Deckchair’s 2011 Season of Voyages

I am very pleased and proud to present for you Deckchair’s 2011 Season.

Theatre is about discovery of a new world for me and this year is no exception. Each of the works we present for you have a voyage at their heart, a voyage by sea to ports of the world aboard a 1930s cruise-ship, a voyage by air to dangerous and inhospitable hotspots and an adventurous voyage to be the first to win an historically unwinnable yacht race. This year’s season brings you travel, adventure, discovery, risk – and a year of gripping theatre.

Living and working in Fremantle, the presence of the sea and the very essence of water has become increasingly important in my life. The water continues to exert its force on the world stage and nationally for both its scarcity and its sudden unexpected abundance. In our hometown of Fremantle, despite our need for rainfall we are blessed with a magnificent port, views across the Indian Ocean, and a connection to our capital city via the Swan River… Water is all around us and it’s very much in our minds at the moment. So nearly every work we are bringing you this year is heavily influenced by water… as part of a journey, as something to conquer or as a recurring motif.

This year I am very pleased to be able to present three new works for you as part of our core season, as well as two new works in our umbrella season, and the return of two fantastic cabaret performances. In addition to our Fremantle season, Krakouer continues its journey around the country and will spend three months touring the eastern states from Queensland all the way round to South Australia.

Our main season kicks off with The Modern International Dead – a gripping and inspiring work that has already received much critical praise and deservedly won numerous awards including the WA Premier’s Book Award for Best Script for talented Australian playwright Damian Millar. A brilliant and timely work, The Modern International Dead presents for us an evening of incredible, poignant and often very funny true stories of peacekeepers and aid-workers abroad. Drawn from true accounts of life in the middle of international war zones, this work will have you on the edge of your seat.

For a journey to a more musical realm, our next major work sets sail with Lorelei. Mark Storen first appeared at Deckchair with his solo show, A Drunken Cabaret back in 2008, and this year Mark is collaborating with the company on creating a new work that mixes a German myth, the great port cities of the world, some incredible music, and a 1930s detective story. I can’t wait to get my teeth into this one.

Last but by no means least, we are creating a new production of the award-winning play, Taking Liberty about the victorious Australia II yacht race that changed the face of Fremantle forever. I am delighted to bring a fresh take on this brilliant award-winning play by WA playwright Ingle Knight to Fremantle, to coincide with the Perth 2011 International Sailing Association Federation championships in December. It’s rare that new work gets a second life, and so important not only for the playwright but also for our audiences. I’m sure you will enjoy the chance to relive this brilliant West Australian story.

With the incredibly talented playwrights, actors, theatre-makers and creative teams we have assembled for you in 2011, I am sure you are going to love every production on offer this year. So get out your diaries and plan your subscriptions and I look forward to seeing you at the theatre right throughout 2011.

Welcome Aboard Deckchair’s 2011 Season of Voyages!