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 said.
“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 http://www.riversideparramatta.com.au.
Cassidy Pearce is Parra News' entertainment journalist and beauty columnist. She is a graduate of the University of Technology Sydney.