BY STEPHANIE ESLAKE
It doesn’t matter where you are. This weekend, you’ll have the opportunity to hear 1,000 children sing.
Australia comes together for By Other Eyes, a choral work uniting music-makers and audiences in commemoration of the end of the First World War.
It’s a reflection of the century that has past since the Armistice, and shares its narrative through the eyes of wounded soldiers those years ago.
It was created in partnership with local Noongar elders and people of the Great Southern. It will be presented in English and Noongar; in live song and pre-recorded audio; as a collaborative experience with an installation by Bruno Munro — Fields of Light: Avenue of Honour.
And as it all comes together with a sold-out audience at Mt Clarence, Albany, it’s obvious that Australia is ready to remember.
Produced by the City of Albany’s Vancouver Arts Centre and supported by the West Australian Opera, the creative director of this multi-faceted cultural event is Matt Rueben James Ward.
He’s here to tell us why we should listen.
Matt, tell us what By Other Eyes means to you.
By Other Eyes is a special opportunity for me to create a new work of choral-theatre in commemoration of the centenary of Armistice.
I’ve been working closely with composer Jonathan Brain, sound artist Jean-Michel Maujean, Noongar elders Lester Coyne, Averil Dean and Eliza Woods; and the wider Great Southern community to create a project which connects with people today in 2018, while reflecting on the past.
As part of this, we are able to bring recognition to the Aboriginal servicemen who served Australia in global conflicts and who were so neglected and discriminated against when they returned home. It is so very special for me to open up this project as a platform to be able to discuss really important issues.
I’m thrilled that we get to perform By Other Eyes from within Bruce Munro’s Field of Light: Avenue of Honour, which will make our show a truly audio-visually immersive experience. We are broadcasting the show live on radio, online, and to wireless audience headsets, which means that our live audience will get to freely walk around the Field of Light: Avenue of Honour installation and be guided by the narrative of By Other Eyes.
It’s a project that brings together so many artistic bodies. What’s it been like working across such a large-scale project?
Part of my philosophy as creative director is to open arts projects to the widest demographic possible. What’s exciting about that is how I end up working with so many different and diverse groups. These sort of collaborations bring a richness that no ‘genius’ could conjure up on their own.
I’ve been working with an exceptional team of professionals, historians, amateur choirs, and school groups. Each and every individual has shared something special; this is especially the case with our collaborating elders who have shared important but painful personal stories. The City of Albany’s Vancouver Arts Centre is a visionary institution which has wholehearted pushed and supported the development and success of By Other Eyes. The Vancouver Arts Centre is a regional arts centre based in Albany, which produces a truly international standard of multidisciplinary arts projects.
It features more than 1000 children’s voices – how did this work on a logistical level?
It’s been incredible to connect with communities across the Great Southern. I grew up in Katanning and Albany, and for me to take singing into schools and help share this special story is very exciting. Logistically, performing late on a Sunday night just wasn’t going to work for children. So, together with Jonathan Brain and Jean-Michel Maujean, we devised a way to bring the voices of kids from Gnowangerup, Katanning, Denmark, Mount Barker, Cosy Corner, Kojonup, and Albany together. This means that the kids from across the region can tune into the radio ‘XYZ’.
The production reflects on the First World War, and the live event tickets are sold out. Why do you think audiences today are still so deeply engaged with this moment of history?
There is something very special when groups of people collaborate together. I think the investment from the creative team, crew, and community members is something that flows on through our networks and communities in a way which has inspired people not associated with the project to attend.
While our story is about the First World War, it actually helps us reflect on what is important. Two themes, which keep coming up in devising workshops and conversations, are the importance of homeland and belonging; and then the importance of family. Very few of us have been to war and can truly understand the impact of active service can take on people, but we all know what it is like to want to ‘belong to a place’ and ‘be loved by a family’. This is what By Other Eyes is really about.
What was something you learnt about yourself through this project that you didn’t expect?
Something I always try and remember is to treat everyone, whether community performer or international professional, with kindness and respect.
When working with large groups, I want everyone to feel they are valued and that their contributions are important. I try not to think about people in terms of collective groups, but rather as individuals with valid options and emotions.
By Other Eyes will be broadcast live on Remembrance Day, 11 November, via Albany Community Radio and online. Watch at this link from 6.45pm on the day.
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Images supplied. Mark Pickthall courtesy of the Bruce Munro Studio.
