Meow Meow's Little Mermaid (2016) Program

MEOW MEOW’S LITTLE MERMAID 28 JAN – 14 FEB

Malthouse Theatre and Sydney Festival present

MEOW MEOW’S LITTLE MERMAID 28 JAN – 14 FEB MERLYN THEATRE Created & Performed by / Meow Meow Direction / Michael Kantor Set & Costume Design / Anna Cordingley Lighting Design / Paul Jackson Musical Direction / Jethro Woodward Dramaturgy / Tom Wright Comedy Director / Cal McCrystal Choreography / Kate Denborough Musical Compositions by / Jherek Bischoff, Iain Grandage, Thomas M Lauderdale, Kate Miller-Heidke, Amanda Palmer & Megan Washington Featuring / Chris Ryan & The Siren Effect Orchestra Stage Manager / Lisa Osborn Assistant Stage Manager / Harriet Gregory

This production has been assisted by the Australian Government’s Major Festivals Initiative in association with the Confederation of Australian International Arts Festivals, Sydney Festival, Perth International Arts Festival, Auckland Arts Festival and Malthouse Theatre.

Malthouse Theatre would like to acknowledge the people of the Kulin nation on whose land this work is being presented.

A note from Malthouse Theatre’s Artistic Director

Love. It’s the great unifier.

We have all experienced love’s ecstasy, pain, comfort, and longing. Even Meow Meow. She may be an international, kamikaze, postpunk superstar, but that does not mean she doesn’t have moments of vulnerability.

Just as Hans Christian Andersen’s mermaid hoped for an immortal soul by sacrificing her tail and voice for a beloved on land, Meow Meow is constantly gazing out into the audience – hoping to glimpse her ‘other half’. In the process, she affords her audience a glimpse at the heart beating beneath the sequins and glitter.

She has chosen an extraordinary array of music to sing her story, including originals by Megan Washington, Amanda Palmer, Iain Grandage, and Kate Miller-Heidke. But it

is not surprising that Meow Meow’s quest for love is expressed through music.

For many of us, music and love are deeply intertwined.

Over our lifetimes, we curate elaborate scores to soundtrack the giddy highs and punishing lows of our romances – turning to the most elusive of human art forms when attempting to articulate the most elusive of human emotions.

Meow Meow is Malthouse Theatre royalty and she never fails to subvert and surprise, so it is thrilling to welcome her back with a new extravaganza – I can’t think of a better way to kick start the year!

Matthew Lutton / Artistic Director, Malthouse Theatre

COVER PHOTOGRAPHY /

Andrew Gough

REHEARSAL IMAGES /

Sarah Walker