Performing Lines WA

So considering it was my idea to have a blog on this website to begin with, I thought four months of writing draft posts without pressing the ‘publish’ button was enough warm up time.

As a communications manager, you can only presume that most of my days are spent writing about shows and talking about artists, using facebook for ‘work reasons only’ and making lunch meetings for ‘networking purposes only’. Yes, most of the time you are right. But for the purposes of making this post an interesting read I’m going to let you know some of the things I do which don’t include being behind a computer screen.

When offered the chance to step outside my humble office nestled in what was Country Arts WA’s board room and into a rehearsal space, I take it – usually with a camera around my neck.

Last week the creative team for Domestic Bliss was at CIA studios causing all kinds of raucous in a make-shift lounge room for their first creative development.

Walking into the space I was met by bruised knees (or in Rhiannon’s case – knees, legs and arms), costumes thrown on the floor and the scent of two weeks’ worth of making things happen. Ah – it was good.

Domestic Bliss is the story of two people desperately in love who are having a fully dysfunctional weekend. Set in a replica of a suburban lounge room, an agoraphobic man and a claustrophobic woman are being pulled apart by a figment of their imagination and lip syncing narrator (whose quirky voice is still permeating through my head).

Although I watched most of the rehearsal through my lens, from what I saw – they were up to something pretty cool. The choreography literally drove performers up the walls, on-top of sink benches and inside cupboards.

It is a work I’m defiantly looking forward to talking up in the future.

Domestic Bliss is choreographed by Chrissie Parrott with music composition by Jonathan Mustard; Performers Rhiannon Newton, Jonathan Buckels, Stefan Karlsson and Marty Moon; and Dramaturg Julia Moody.

Sarah Rowbottam, Communications Manager, Performing Lines WA