A TASMANIAN REQUIEM
“While Tasmania has moved on from a past where some people denied that Aboriginal people still exist, the fact there was a war is rarely discussed.”
An oratorio for voice, brass & percussion
A Tasmanian Requiem is an ambitious musical and visual conception that faces a past haunted by the devastating legacy of the Black War of Van Diemen's Land.
This groundbreaking collaboration between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal artists acknowledges the impact of frontier conflict, and the strength, beauty and resilience of Tasmanian Aboriginal culture. In a necessary and redemptive journey, this Requiem commemorates an irretrievable loss of innocence, and the power of truth and spirit.
Based loosely on the Requiem Mass and performed in English, Latin and Tasmanian Aboriginal language, this unique performance experience fuses film, language and live music.
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Frances Butler
PRODUCER, DIRECTOR & WRITER
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Quin Thomson
COMPOSER / SOPRANO
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Jim Everett puralia meenamatta
WRITER
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Greg Lehman
WRITER
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Julie Gough
FILMMAKER
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Michael Gissing
FILMMAKER / EDITOR
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Gary Wain
MUSIC DIRECTOR
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Madelena Andersen-Ward
MEZZO SOPRANO
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Zoy Frangos
TENOR
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Lotte Betts-Dean
MEZZO SOPRANO
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Amelia Jones
SOPRANO
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Stephen Grant
BASS
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Tom Buckmaster
TENOR
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Yoram Levy
TRUMPET
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Glenn Schultz
TRUMPET
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Mandy Parsons
FRENCH HORN
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David Robins
TROMBONE
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Tim Jones
TUBA
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Greg Gurr
SOUND DESIGN
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Aron Webb
LIGHTING DESIGN
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Dewayne Everettsmith
CULTURAL CONSULTANT
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Cassandra Wunsch
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT
WORLD PREMIERE SEASON
THEATRE ROYAL, HOBART
13 - 14 APRIL 2018
COMPOSER Quin (Helen) Thomson
WRITERS Jim Everett-puralia meenamatta, Frances Butler, Greg Lehman
FILMMAKERS Julie Gough, Michael Gissing
MUSIC DIRECTION Gary Wain
PRODUCER Frances Butler
VOCAL ENSEMBLE Madelena Andersen-Ward (mezzo soprano) Lotte Betts-Dean (mezzo soprano) Tom Buckmaster (tenor) Stephen Grant (bass) Amelia Jones (soprano) Quin (Helen) Thomson (soprano) Zoy Frangos (tenor)
BRASS ENSEMBLE Yoram Levy (trumpet) Glenn Schultz (trumpet) Mandy Parsons (French horn) David Robins (trombone) Tim Jones (tuba) Gary Wain (percussion)
Creative Mentors: Judith Clingan, Annette Downs, Constantine Koukias
Cultural Consultant: Dewayne Everettsmith
Production Assistant: Cassandra Wunsch
Brass Arrangement Consultant: Tim Jones
Digital Technology: Alive Technologies
Film Editor: Michael Gissing
Graphic Design: Heike Schmidt, Raum Studio
Lighting Design: Aron Webb
Sound Design: Greg Gurr
Production Design: Frances Butler
Still Photography: Alastair Bett, Frances Butler, Michael Gissing, Julie Gough
Tintype Photography: Phillip England, Tasmanian Tintype
Additional Footage: Pawel Achtel, Dan Broun, Chris Fox, Troy Melville, Raef Sawford, Tom Waugh
Additional Musicians: Madeleine Dyer, Melfred Lijauco, Tom Misson, Maraika Smit
What People Are Saying
“Not only does it force us to remember, but it educates those of us who cannot remember what has been kept silent, the stories that have been buried rather than taught to our children. This work is dark and monumental. In A Tasmanian Requiem, this state has found a true masterpiece..”
— Limelight
“I am blown away by A Tasmanian Requiem. It is an extraordinary work and was performed so exquisitely that I am thinking about it constantly the morning after seeing it. Congratulations for producing a work that is groundbreaking and incredibly beautiful. Also, congratulations to the ensemble for giving a nuanced, intense and moving performance of the requiem. It is a concert I will always remember.”
“A Tasmanian Requiem could hardly have been better timed ... (it) has much to offer to this conversation. It shows what a historical reckoning, and reconciliation, could look - and sound - like.”
— The Conversation
“Congratulations to all involved (past and present) in delivering the incredibly powerful A Tasmanian Requiem. A beautiful voice to come out of Tasmania very much embedded in the people and land of today. Let’s hope people listen.”
“A Tasmanian Requiem acknowledges the pain of two cultures torn hideously apart and then dares to weave threads of compassion between them. The tragedy and complexity are magnificently expressed in this inspired collaborative work of genius.”
— Tasmanian Times
“A Tasmanian Requiem is a masterpiece, powerful and poignant, it should be performed all over Australia (and beyond) It has universal significance and could be seen as Requiem for the Planet as well. The performers were staggeringly good and the images of the land and loss made me weep. I was exhausted by the end and surely the performers must have been too. I will never forget A Tasmanian Requiem, thank you!”
A Tasmanian Requiem was generously supported by
The Australian Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body, and
The Minister for the Arts, through Arts Tasmania and Libraries Tasmania.
Supported by the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, Performing Lines Tasmania and Tasmanian Tintype.
