The Refugee

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Event The Refugee
Venue Newcastle Leagues Club, Newcastle, NSW
First Date 8 November 1990
Opening Date 8 November 1990
Last Date 8 November 1990
Dates Estimated No
Status Professional
World Premiere No
Part of a Tour Yes
Description The Refugee was made as a response to public distrust and xenophobia about refugees being granted asylum in Australia. It consisted of 5 scenes, each devised around the company members personal responses to the stories of 5 refugee women from different cultural backgrounds whom they had interviewed.

It was designed to be performed in community spaces including outdoors with minimal lighting effects. The stage space was 10X10 meter empty space (except for a tall pole in one corner with a public broadcast speaker mounted on top). Props were carried on and off by the performers. The performers wore radio microphones and there was significant sound track. The show utilised a variety of performance languages from spoken narration, a Capella singing and silent movement.

The sequence of stories was; "The Wait" based on an Afghani woman's experience of waiting outside a prison for news of her husband and son. "Can Anyone Really Care About Someone They Don't even Know?" based on recollections of a Chilean refugee. "Pauls Story" in which a young woman recounts she and her boyfriends experience of capture, interrogation and torture following a demonstration against the Pinochet dictatorship. "Lien's story" based on a Vietnamese refugee's experience of escaping Vietnam in a leaky boat. "The Double Exile" based on a number of first hand accounts of African women fleeing war.
Description Source Production Company
Primary Genre Theatre - Spoken Word
Secondary Genre Play with Music
Subjects Refugees
Organisations
Contributors
Name Function Notes
Meme Thorne Choreographer
Peter Wells Composer
Anne Rattey Costume Maker
Don Mamouney Designer
Regina Heilmann Devisor
Don Mamouney Devisor
Jai McHenry Devisor
Meme Thorne Devisor
Don Mamouney Director
Matthew Fargher Musical Advisor
Regina Heilmann Performer
Jai McHenry Performer
Meme Thorne Performer
Ian Bowie Production Manager
Barry Gamba Researcher
Peter Wells Sound Designer
Resources
Text Nationality Australia
Production Nationality Australia
Event Status Completed
Data Source
Source Description
Cast List Records held by the Workers Cultural Action Committee
Sidetrack Archive Box 13
Newspaper Records held by the Workers Cultural Action Committee
Data Set AusStage
Event Identifier 61034