Parra News May 21 2024

ENTERTAINMENT
MOVIES, TELEVISION, MUSIC AND MORE – PARRAMATTA’S LEADING ENTERTAINMENT GUIDE
FROM THE PAGE
TO THE STAGE
CASSIDY PEARCE
On Saturday, June 1, a brand new
show will be making its way to
Riverside, bringing to life some
of Australia’s favourite children’s
books from the last 50 years.
Over the course of her career, Libby Hathorn
has authored around 80 stories.
For playwright Kim Carpenter, it was the
challenge of integrating as many of these as
possible into one production which piqued
his interest in the project.
“Earlier this century, we did do a production
of her story Grandma’s Shoes, which my company,
Theatre of Image, did with Opera Australia,
and that was a huge success, a sell-out!”
he told Parra News.
“We’d kept in touch as friends since then,
and it was simply by going to her place for dinner
that I left with a suitcase full of 40 books.”
Carpenter recalls sifting through the books
one by one, ultimately selecting 19 to create
the collage of themes and threads which
would become ‘Incredibilia’.
“There were some books that were more
dominant than others,” he said.
“It was all about looking at stories which
could be adapted to music and song, and
could be also therefore quite visual. That was a
priority for me and the kind of work that I do.
“Libby’s writing is very stylised, so it’s not
naturalistic, and therefore it sits better when
it’s sung.”
The show shares the story of two young people
who are in love with books, as we follow
them on an imaginative journey over the
moon, and to just about everywhere from deserts
to gardens in just one night and a day,
complete with music by Peter Kennard.
“It’s a very positive piece, with some terrific
songs, and live music,” he said.
As far as who would be bringing the story to
life, Carpenter said he had a very specific vision.
“Once I was into reading the books and seeing
what the common denominators were, I
thought stylistically, this was a piece for two
really terrific performers who become the
friends,” he said.
“I auditioned extensively to find exactly
those right two people, because they have to
have really good singing voices, and they have
to be charismatic and likeable to the audience,
and they have to be good actors.”
Ultimately, Manon Gunderson-Briggs and
Fabio Jaconelli were selected for the roles, and
will be performing alongside a series of props
made out of everyday objects, like bottles
which become people, and washing up gloves
made into a cow.
“I think it will resonate particularly with children
who are addicted to the screen,” he said.
“There’s other ways to make life fun and creative!”
Promising a joyous time for both children
and adults alike, Carpenter said he can’t wait
to put ‘Incredibilia’ on stage at Riverside.
“Everyone’s in for a fast and exciting and
beautiful, as well as highly imaginative journey,”
he said.
‘Incredibilia’ will be on at Riverside Theatres
on Saturday, June 1 at 11am and 1pm.
Tickets start at $24.50. To book, visit riversideparramatta.com.au.
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