Opinion: The Critical Condition of South Australia’s Arts Record

“Critical condition” has taken a new meaning in Adelaide, the one time ‘City of the Arts’.

It has been coming upon us inexorably. Death by a thousand cuts.

 

In July, 2024 The Adelaide Critics Circle Incorporated expressed its concern at the news on June 30 that The Advertiser’s long-term, specialist-contributor critics were being thanked for their service and informed:

 

“We will no longer be running arts reviews so will no longer be needing you as a contributor. This email is to give you 30 days’ notice.”

 

This news generated a tsunami of distress and anger on social media.

The MEAA, the union representing both journalists/critics, actors, and theatre workers declared:

 

“The decision of Adelaide’s Advertiser to no longer employ specialist freelance arts reviewers is mindless cost-cutting that does a major disservice to the city’s arts community, audiences, and its readers.” 

 

Others among the torrent of commentary were not as polite.

 

We have blithely taken for granted the role of arts criticism as a commentary of record on the cultural state of play.

 

There is, of course, plenty of arts commentary and criticism if one looks around; much more so since the freedom of the Internet gave voice to anyone who wants to have a say. But the official record has always lain in print. Poor, beloved, doomed print.

Traditional print newspapers have been the official organs of “the record”.

They have been universally accessible. They have been “actual” as opposed to “virtual”.

 

Hence, the perplexity in the arts world when the one newspaper of the one-newspaper city ceases to print specialist arts reviews. Arts companies and practitioners have had to learn to seek them out online and print them out themselves. Even online, they’ve decreased in our major masthead. Critics were getting fewer assignments.

 

For an organ such as InDaily, it is less problematic. Through the auspices of the Helpmann Academy, InDaily produces Adelaide’s premiere arts publication, InReview. It has a stable of erudite critics and an unprecedented program of mentoring and publishing new up-and-coming critics. There is nothing quite like it. It is a beacon. And it is free.

 

But it is not alone as a respected online voice of criticism and commentary.

Boutique performing arts sites such as ours, The Barefoot Review, are long-standing, this one now expanded to include the visual arts as well as occasional features and interviews.

Accepted review sites include Glam Adelaide which is quick off the mark with crits as too is Stage Whispers and The Clothesline. There are selected reviews in Broadway World and ArtsHub. There’s TASA, Limelight, Fifty+, and Theatre Travels.

There are reputable personal sites such as those of Murray Bramwell, John Doherty, and Steve Davis. Other independents post on Facebook.

Adelaide’s arts world ever was fecund.

 

Adelaide was publishing its own newspaper within two years of settlement; its first editions having been produced in London and shipped out. Adelaide had built its first official theatre within two years of settlement. The arts have been fundamental to the fabric of our society.

 

The Advertiser and for some years, the Adelaide Review, shone the light on the social and professional health of the arts.

In the earlier years, if one delves into Trove, not only were the performing and visual arts fastidiously and occasionally ferociously reviewed, but the critics included commentary on current trends and characters in their reports.

The critics were respected, some revered, and some feared.

Adelaide became known to the national and international arts world as the city with the toughest critics.

It was not that our critics have been harsh. It is that they have been highly discerning and finessed by an education in international arts festivals since 1960.

 

We just have to accept the cold realities of our times.

The city’s print daily has tried. Print space and the ever-pinching economy have reduced the colourful loquacity of yore. 

 

Upliftingly, following the firing furore, The Advertiser’s editor, Gemma Jones, seemed to countermand the edict with this statement: 

 

“The Advertiser has a proud history of covering the arts, including reviews by respected critics. The Advertiser's commitment to the arts has not changed. The masthead will continue to employ experts, both from external sources and from its reporting ranks which boast talented arts writers and editors with many decades of experience. Readers can continue to look forward to reviews of Adelaide Festival. A number of reviews with very small online audiences will cease to ensure The Advertiser's efforts are directed to arts content with wider appeal.”

 

Uplifting but also puzzling.

 

The city’s independent arts advocacy group, The Adelaide Critics Circle, founded in 1996 by then Festival director Robyn Archer,  has been in deep discussion about where to for the arts record of this arts city once proudly labelled, car number plates and all, “The Festival State”.

 

It had bragged an ongoing history of arts initiatives, a veritable arts fecundity after the Playford years. The Dunstan Decade engendered such a national reputation that creatives flocked in to share the energy.

Government support kick-started all sorts of things. 

We spawned so many arts talents that we could afford to share them with the world. They were an unofficial state export.

Those golden years are now fragments of memory.

Today, we don’t share talent. We lose it.

We don’t have “Festival State” number plates and our beloved 50-year-old Festival Centre has been squashed and overshadowed by commercial development.

 

Where once our Festivals and Fringes were blessed with mainstream sponsorship, now they plead.

For many years, the ‘Tiser published daily lift-out sections to cover all the reviews and stories emerging from the Fringe and Festival. Daily program guides showed the stars and grabs from current crits.  Festivalgoers carried these lift-outs around with them.

 

These were the days when the ‘Tiser’s arts policy was to have a reviewer at every opening.

This was a massive logistical feat, and it was sometimes criticised because not all the reviewers were au fait with the arts.

The masthead was investing vast sums in its art support, paid reviews, and in-kind sponsorship going right to the nitty gritty with reams of newsprint. But, just as the Government started to tighten its arts belt, so did the paper.

 

The Adelaide Critics Circle fell afoul of the arts cutbacks, too. It began with annual arts grants from the Department of the Arts.  This enabled it to present the richest performing arts awards in the country: $1500 a pop. They were much envied around the land. Silversmith Christine Pyman was commissioned to create a logo, a figure reaching for the stars, and silver trophies went with the cash awards. The critics wore matching silver badges.

 

Coopers added money for amateur theatre awards and The Independent Arts Foundation sponsored the coveted “Innovation in the Arts” award.

But changes in government administration and office bearers and the establishment of the government’s own Ruby awards resulted in the Circle’s government funding reducing bit by bit to zero.

Awards for excellence across the board, and even Lifetime Achievement awards, have had their cash and trophies replaced by certificates.  Thanks to faithful Coriole wines and other sponsors, and the support of independent venues such as Goodwood Theatres and Holden Street, the awards nights and accolades continue.

The Critics Circle awards are profoundly respected throughout the arts industry. They still stand aloft because they are independently bestowed. Companies and individuals do not have to “apply” for consideration. The critics are out and about keeping on top of current work. Throughout the year they make nominations and at year’s end, they vote.

 

Meanwhile, we must be philosophical. Print media has been going through tough times.  Redundancies and budget cuts have depleted newsrooms. The ‘Tiser has kept an arts presence with magazine features and lively news stories. But lost are the Arts opinion columns which enabled experienced media pundits to provide valuable commentary on the health of the arts.

One does not doubt that the masthead would prefer it otherwise.   

One would never say the rationalisation of millennial economy was a matter of choice.

We are in a new era. We need new solutions. 

The dear old ’Tiser stands as a little red flag.

The record itself is teetering on non-existence.

 

Talking to the SA State Library about what is and isn’t archived for posterity one discovers that, yes, the print media and all things print are up there stashed and stored. Old school has a future record. InDaily and The Advertiser’s digital content are harvested and will be available for researchers. All is not lost.

But, for how long? The National Archives also is selective in what is preserved for posterity, mainly official business. 

The Internet’s famous WayBack Machine seems to have run out of puff for scouring web content.  

And what of posterity, anyway? Who might need it?

What socio-historic minutiae matters in the deep tomorrows of time?

 

As things stand, with the evolution of the boundless virtual world, ’tis but a mortal dollar deal.

 

When the Internet was invented, it was hoped to be the vast free library of all knowledge for all.  Then “the men in suits” discovered it and saw a profit line. Pornography was their first cash cow. And then, bit by voracious bit, it all became commodified.  

Now we pay for everything online and when we don’t pay, it ceases to exist. Domains large and small live the life of their owners.

Even our individual email is out there on that supposedly immense repository we call “The Cloud”.  If we don’t pay for our space there, it, too, is gone. 

 

Historians wring their hands. Ephemera rules.

 

Samela Harris

 

Samela Harris is founding chair of the Adelaide Critics Circle and a former Arts Editor at The Advertiser. She also was that paper’s Internet columnist and inaugural online editor.

Opinion: History rests on the brink as SA Museum faces extinction event

"Reimagine."

This word set all my cultural alarm bells off into strident chimes of incredulity.

The new administration plans to “reimagine” our stately old SA Museum.

They find it tired. They think the Egyptian Room is old hat. All very yesterday.

Silly old me.

 

I have spent my life believing that museums are where you keep old hats.  Dated old hats with dates recorded on them, so to speak. Museums are all about things dated.

Carbon dated!

 

If anything is old and tired, surely it must be all those ancient rocks our museum has so expertly collected. They don’t do much. They just sit there. But, their millions of years of survival telling the fossil record of evolution makes the 60 thousand years of Aboriginal artefacts and history seem Johnny Come Lately.

In the vast scheme of things, this is so.  

The museum’s collections shows us exactly how it is so.

 

Our museum’s Ediacaran collection has led to that geological period here scoring what they call a “Golden Spike” in the planet’s timeline. That’s a bit on the big deal side.

I’m an old lady now but my knowledge base from childhood has been underscored by what I have seen and learnt to understand in our museum.

I’ve always loved it, although some of the concepts it explores have scared me.

Many things have been heartbreaking. Extinction, for instance. 

The loss of Aboriginal heritage and language.

The rise of recognition of this is uplifting. We are learning how much we have to learn. 

But without the museum’s showcase of our pasts, bad and good, it would be hard to teach our young and young to come.

 

The importance of the museum and the knowledge it represents is so fundamental that it feels a bit ridiculous to be enumerating it.

“Seeing with your own eyes” is what museums give us.

 

That “outdated” Egyptology room has been imprinted on my memory since childhood. It led to years of learning and even to a small degree of collecting antiquities. It was a springboard for knowledge. Yes, it is fusty. But it could do with more, not less.

 

As for the insect collection. It fed my fascination, too. Had I not fallen into journalism, becoming an entomologist was high on career choices. In my London years, I had the privilege of breeding insects for the living collection: cockroaches and stick insects. To this day, I study and worry about the insect and arachnid world. The drop in their population is a terrifying signal in our growing climate crisis.

 

The museum is there to explain these things, its researchers to devise reasons and strategies.  Sometimes, nuances in science lead to major world-changing developments.

Research is a core business. Knowledge is everything.

 

The idea of slashing research in a crucible of discovery is sickeningly regressive.

As for “reimagining”. What an insulting concept. 

 

History tries to represent the past with integrity. It often leaves a record. Museums keep the record. It helps us to imagine what and where and how of the past, to see history in the mind’s eye. But “re-imagine”? Re-contexualise? I can think of a few “re”-words, since “re” sings of a different sort of backwards. Repress, retard, regress….

 

It makes me think of those American museums where religious anti-evolutionists had forced the change of exhibit labels to “theory”. Ignorance is on the rise.

 

So it comes to pass that the people of this state have risen to the cause. We’re furious.  We’re a crowd of signatories of letters and Tweets and memes. Suddenly, from all sides of politics, from all ages and demographics, we are angry activists.

 

See you on the steps of Parliament House on Saturday 13th April.

 

Samela Harris

Story: Womadelaide 2024

From the bustling streets of Paris to the serene landscapes of Tibet, from the rhythmic beats of Senegal to the vibrant sounds of Australia's Aboriginal roots, Womadelaide 2024 promises a journey through a diverse tapestry of global music and culture. Set against the picturesque backdrop of Botanic Park, or Tainmuntilla, in Adelaide, this iconic festival invites music enthusiasts to immerse themselves in an unparalleled celebration of creativity, diversity, and artistic expression.

 

As the sun sets over the lush Moreton Bay Fig trees, festival-goers will be treated to an eclectic lineup of artists hailing from every corner of the globe. Among the headliners gracing the stages of Womadelaide this year is Baaba Maal (Senegal). Renowned as one of Africa's most celebrated musicians, Maal's mesmerizing blend of traditional Senegalese rhythms with contemporary influences has captivated audiences worldwide. With his soul-stirring vocals and infectious grooves, Maal promises to deliver an electrifying performance that transcends borders and unites cultures.

 

Hailing from Lahore, Arooj Aftab (USA/Pakistan) is a trailblazing vocalist and composer whose music seamlessly blends elements of classical Pakistani music with avant-garde sensibilities. Drawing inspiration from Sufi poetry and modern jazz, Aftab's ethereal soundscapes will evoke a sense of transcendence and spiritual awakening.

 

The pulsating rhythms of Ibibio Sound Machine (United Kingdom) will also be on show this year. Fronted by the charismatic Eno Williams, this London-based collective channels the vibrant energy of West Africa, blending traditional Nigerian rhythms with modern funk and disco grooves.

 

From the infectious grooves of Ibibio Sound Machine to the more introspective tones of Emel Mathlouthi (Tunisia), her haunting vocals and poignant lyrics will speak to the resilience of the human spirit in the face of adversity. Moonlight Benjamin (Haiti/France) electrifying performances are also a testament to resilience, as well as the vitality of the Haitian culture. Combining the rich musical traditions of Haiti with the contemporary sounds of French rock and blues her powerful vocals and soulful lyrics will invite audiences to embark on a journey of introspection and liberation.

 

From the sultry sounds of Haiti, the music will take a fiery turn when Seun Kuti and Egypt 80 (Nigeria) take the stage. Hailing from the bustling streets of Lagos, Nigeria, Kuti carries on the legacy of his legendary father, Fela Kuti, with his explosive blend of Afrobeat rhythms and fiery political commentary. Backed by the legendary Egypt 80 band, Kuti's electrifying performances are a call to action, a rallying cry for justice and equality in a world plagued by oppression and injustice.

 

In a fusion of their rich musical traditions, Pongo (Angola/Portugal) and Tenzin Choegyal (Australia/Tibet) will both have audiences considering the intersection of tradition and modernity. Pongo, a force to be reckoned with in the world of Afro-Portuguese music, fuses elements of kuduro, semba, and electronic beats. Their infectious rhythms and fierce rhymes celebrate the vibrant spirit of Afro-diasporic communities around the world. Where Choegyal, a masterful musician whose music transcends cultural boundaries, will bridge the gap between his Tibetan heritage and his Australian upbringing with his haunting melodies and heartfelt lyrics.

 

Comprising a diverse group of musicians from across the Pacific Islands, Wantok Sing Sing (Oceania) is a celebration of Oceania's rich cultural heritage. From the rhythms of Fiji to the melodies of Vanuatu, this supergroup's dynamic performances showcase the beauty and diversity of Pacific Island music.

 

Each artist will bring their own unique blend of sounds and influences to the stage. From the soulful ballads of Corinne Bailey Rae (United Kingdom) to the infectious grooves of Cymande (United Kingdom), from the hypnotic beats of DakhaBrakha (Ukraine) a Ukrainian quartet known for their avant-garde approach to traditional folk music, to the soul-stirring melodies of Gilberto Gil (Brazil), the Brazilian musical icon whose songs carry the spirit of resistance and resilience, each artist offers a unique perspective on the world and its rich tapestry of cultures that make up our global community.

 

The enchanting sounds of José González (Sweden) will also echo through the park on Saturday night. Hailing from the serene landscapes of Sweden, Gonzalez's gentle vocals and intricate guitar work create an atmosphere of serenity and introspection that will set the stage for an evening of musical exploration.

 

Elephants Laugh (South Korea) will also captivate audiences with their mesmerizing performance titled "Muljil". Hailing from South Korea, Elephants Laugh brings a unique fusion of traditional Korean music and contemporary artistry to the stage. Through their innovative use of instruments and visual storytelling, they invite spectators on a journey of discovery and wonder, exploring themes of heritage, identity, and the human experience.

 

Not all of the action takes place on the stages however, with roving performances and aerial acts to excite and entertain. Handspring Puppet Company (South Africa) will enchant audiences with their spellbinding puppetry and theatrical storytelling. Renowned for its groundbreaking productions that blur the lines between puppetry, dance, and visual art their masterful manipulation of puppets and evocative narratives will create a world of imagination and wonder that transcends language and culture.

 

Gratte Ciel (France), the French performance artists who "dance in the air", return for the 3^rd time to defy gravity and ignite the sky with their breathtaking aerial acrobatics. Their graceful movements and daring feats push the boundaries of what is possible captivating audiences with their awe-inspiring agility, and artistry. Finally, Streb Extreme Action (USA) will thrill audiences with their adrenaline-fueled stunts and gravity-defying feats of athleticism. Known for their daring combination of dance, acrobatics, and extreme sports their high-flying aerial manoeuvres and jaw-dropping stunts will push the limits of the human body.

 

These performance acts, along with the diverse lineup of musicians, artists, speakers, and worldly selections of food and drink promise to transport audiences to a world of imagination, creativity, and cultural exploration. It is 4 days and nights not to be missed from the 8th to the 11th of March at Botanic Park/Tainmuntilla.

 

Paul Rodda

 

When: 8 to 11 Mar

Where: Botanic Park/Tainmuntilla

Bookings: womadelaide.com.au

Opinion: David O’Brien’s 2023 Top Ten

Sociopolitical theatre/dance loomed large in mind through nationally and locally produced work in 2023. Something there’s not been much of for some time.

The year of the referendum to include Indigenous Australians in the constitution saw Australian Dance Theatre and Bangarra Dance Theatre and Marrugeku present three profoundly significant works. Works exploring historic experiences of dispossession and struggle on the individual and collective level.

 

Then there’s extraordinary productions by Theatre Republic, Lina Limosani and Famous Last Words tackling the personal-is-political thing from a grand baroque historical context to the nitty gritty of strata corporation politics.

 

So here’s the Top 10! (My version is as many as I like.) Get into it!

 

11) Music for Other Worlds – Alex Frayne and Paul Grabowsky/Adelaide Festival. Adelaide’s most renowned photographer’s works were screened to on-the-spot jazz improvisation by the great pianist Paul Grabowsky. A unique, stunning experience, as Frayne’s meticulous photo essays merged and flowed in six phrases. Grabowsky responded to them in the moment. The ear saw as much as the eyes heard. This work opened up a new angle on visual and musical narrative more particular to the language of film.

 

10) The River That Ran Up Hill – Slingsby/Big Dream Festival. Edgell Junior’s story of surviving Vanuatu’s Category 5 Cyclone Pam in 2015 was a significant work of community building and awareness. Relying on the magic inherent in simple stripped back design, direct storytelling and very clever lighting effects. Andy Packer and Clara Solly-Slades’ production addressed a big environmental issue in a beautiful and profound way.

 

9) Tracker – Austrian Dance Theatre/Adelaide Festival. A very personal work. The story of ADT’s Daniel Riley’s Great Great Uncle Alec ‘Tracker’ Riley. A personal history delving into an indigenous man’s life between two worlds. White Australia. Black Australia. Where does identity and loyalty lie? To the land you are made of and from, or the white boss benefiting from your knowledge of your land he has taken? A sharply focused work on the nexus of being skilfully coopted by an occupying force.

 

8) Jurrungu Ngan-ga (Straight Talk) - Marrugeku/Adelaide Festival. Australia’s history since colonisation has been that of an island prison camp. Choreographer Dalisa Pigram and Director Rachael Swain’s production explored this very central historical fact with direct brutality in context of indigenous experience. An explosive, unapologetic and gripping expose.

 

7) Yuldea – Bangarra Dance Theatre. A Great Victorian Desert/South Australian story told, at last, from perspective and firsthand experience of indigenous people who lived and suffered decades of decimation by industrialisation and impact of the Maralinga atomic bomb tests. Frances Rings’ production focused every creative element of the work on the dancers’ bodies. They were the land, the people, the spirituality, the history as never seen or understood by White Australia before.

 

6) Bàrbaros - Lina Limosani. Nightmare baroque, come Gothic dive into the darkest heart of human civilisation since primeval slime crawled onto land and evolved/devolved into a multi millennia parade of subjugations and oppressions. Starkest, most brutal and enthrallingly beautiful choreographic work tackling barbarism at its dark human core.

 

5) Future Present – Theatre Republic. In its second iteration, the one night only project in which short new works on a theme are written, directed, rehearsed, designed, teched and performed in mere days (if not shorter than that) once again proved its incredible value. Democracy was the theme. From inner battles of family needs a female Minister mother and wife is forced to confront, what a name means in body corporate strata politics in securing a home to risking, or not, family connection when international politics is a source of danger. Pressure cooker stuff all round producing work tackling democracy from unique ‘never considered that’ angles. Showed off acting smarts at the sharp end of the scale. Last year’s event provided Emily Steel inspiration for her work The Garden. This is a very important, hugely valuable project.

 

4) Night, Mother – Holden Street Theatre Company. Powerful, profoundly shattering, deeply troubling and insightful production. When a down and out divorced daughter tells her mother she will kill herself in hours, what can be said or done? Martha Lott, Kathryn Fisher and director Peter Goers went where they probably didn’t want, but had to in delivering a deeply truthful work, not a mawkish apologia.

 

3) The Garden – Theatre Republic. Brilliant, thought provoking, darkly funny and very uncomfortable check-your-privilege work from playwright Emily Steel. Australia has a refugee perception problem, and Steel’s work tackled it head on, utilising innate judgemental preconceptions and self-satisfied moral superiority of middle Australia with gleefully deadly comic effect through Elizabeth Hay and Rashidi Edward’s performances.

 

2) Looped – Holden Street Theatre Company. Debut new company smash hit production, directed with sublime panache by Peter Goers and rolling with utterly pace perfect performances from Martha Lott, Chris Asimos and Robert Cusenza. A work which ever so steadily inched towards three significant words uttered by Lotts’s stunning characterisation of Tallulah Bankhead, on which premise the whole drama is turned on its head.

 

1) Proud – Famous Last Words. Understanding, and successfully communicating what this far right Proud Boys thing infiltrating Australian male circles is, was a tour de force achievement from Director/playwright James Watson and actor Henry Cooper. Watson’s writing had gravitas and down to earth sensibility needed to explore and explain, at the most basic human level, a dangerously unsettling movement. Cooper’s performance kept it real, simple, allowing us to see how easy the allure of belonging when in a disenfranchised state of being such extremes become.

 

Hot New Artist to Watch – James Watson

 

One years’ worth of work by Director/writer James Watson with company Famous Last Words pretty much convinced myself and Adelaide Critics Circle colleagues he was worthy of our 2023 Emerging Artist Award. But this year’s work comes off the back of a very long period of training. Most significantly, studying the playwright’s craft under Stephen Sewell, Australia’s most significant writer of political theatre at NIDA, after graduating from Flinders Drama Centre.

Watson’s writing and deft directorial calls on four projects proved remarkable demonstration of a maturity coming into its own. Follow everything he does. He is unafraid to walk outside the box.

 

David O’Brien