It takes a family to raise a theatre company, so we gathered Stirling Players family members, Erik Strauts, Bronwyn Chapple, Anita Zamberlan Canala, and Probir Dutt, to take is into some of its rich heritage and interesting moments.

The SA Drink of the Week is from Howard Vineyard, which supports the work of Stirling Players.

And in the Musical Pilgrimage, we hear an original composition by Stirling Players committee member, Probir Dutt.

Join us for this milestone episode as we blend history, music, and community conversation, marking eleven years of showcasing the passions that shape South Australia.

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Running Sheet: The Hills Are Alive With The Sound Of Theatre

00:00:00 Intro

Introduction

00:02:20 SA Drink Of The Week

The SA Drink Of The Week this week is a 2022 Shiraz from Howard Vineyard.

For the record, the General Manager and Head Winemaker at Howard Vineyard, Tom Northcott, was a guest in episode 161 A Night At The Manchen, and his 2010 Amos Cabernet Franc was our SA Drink Of The Year in 2013.

00:07:50 From The Stirling Players – Erik Strauts, Bronwyn Chapple, Anita Zamberlan Canala, and Probir Dutt

The Stirling Players is a prominent amateur theatre group based in the Adelaide Hills, with a rich history marked by significant achievements and contributions to the local arts scene. As the group approaches opening night of its first ever “cross species” production, a play called Sylvia about the relationship between a man and his dog and the rift that creates in the relationship with his human wife, we’ve gathered backstage while people scurry about us, bumping in the set and running some of the final rehearsals. To take the story of Stirling Players out for walkies, we have the director of Sylvia, Erik Strauts, committee member and theatre stalwart, Bronwyn Chapple, actor who plays Kate in Sylvia, Anita Zamberlan Canala, and fellow committee member and composer, Probir Dutt.

Sylvia runs September 13-28, 2024. Tickets here.

Your new president, Tim Williams, opens the current edition of your newsletter saying, “Did you know that producing a play is absolutely simple?” If I hadn’t read past that, I would have thought that bothering to come up the hill for this chat was much ado about nothing. However, he does go on to give context. What is the first reaction that runs through your minds when you hear that provocative claim?

Erik, to give us an idea of what the arc of a production is like, how long it takes from conception to birth – when did you get an inkling that this could be a good Stirling Players production?

Sarah Jessica Parker of Sex And The City fame was one of the first actors to play Syliva, the dog. How on earth do you direct a human to be a dog in a way that holds the narrative together without breaking that all important suspension of disbelief among audience members?

The play did get some very warm reviews during its run off and on Broadway in the 1990s but it also got criticised for its portrayal of women. Were those criticisms valid, or did they misunderstand the show, and if they were valid, have you had to modify aspects of the play or its staging?

Bronwyn, you’re a part of the furniture at the Stirling Players (and I mean that in a nice way) and I believe you’ve also maintained a collection of production posters and cast notes, so I wonder if you can recall other productions from the company’s past, where you’ve taken on unconventional material?

Let’s dart back to the beginning of Stirling Players. It was 1972, I believe. What came first – the desire to have a theatre company or the desire to save the Stirling Institute building?

I do like the creative spark that lives in this company because it was only a few years old when it started the Hills Festival of One Act Plays in 1976. , the Stirling Players initiated the Hills Festival of One Act Plays. I love a good one act plays. What do they bring that longer plays don’t, and vice versa? At one level, I guess there’s a balancing act between getting a story over efficiently vs making it worth the work to go out and get you to the theatre on a cold, hills evening.

What has been the mainstay of Stirling Players material over the years?

What are the challenges in getting audiences to your shows in this age of streaming services like Netflix, and people having a stream of snack-size districtions right in the palms of their hands?

Probir, it’s not every theatre company that has someone on the team who is a gifted composer and musician. We are going to hear some of your music later but before we get to that, in a general sense, what attracted you to the Stirling Players?

People I know in the music field are very very precious about their copyright, etc, and rightfully so. If you write and produce music for a production, what happens at that level to make sure Stirling Players is in the clear but that your work is also protected?

Talking of music, the Hills Musical Company arose as part of the push to save the Institute. Are we allowed to mention them in mixed company?

So, we have two pretty healthy companies that need volunteers to make productions happen. I’d like to understand how you attract new people but to get into that, what runs through your mind when you hear messages like this one that I saw on the Adelaide & South Australian Theatre Company Facebook Group this morning: Hey all! In desperate need of a stage hand for 3 shows tomorrow. (Yes I know it’s Father’s Day, it’s a pain). Volunteer at the parks theatre, call time 9am through to 8pm. It’s a great show, we’re having a heap of fun, just not enough hands!!!

Many churches and community service groups struggle because their people are ageing and there’s not young blood coming through. What is the makeup of the Stirling Players community because I note that for your 50th celebration a couple years ago, Bronwyn, you chose to do Radio Show because, and I quote, it was a “chance to give some of the older Stirling Players, who find trouble remembering lines these days, to be involved and have scripts in front of them.”

What are the next shows on the horizon?

What would each of you like to see in Stirling Players’ future over the next 5-10 years.

How do people get tickets for Sylvia, which runs September 13-28, 2024?

01:00:20 Musical Pilgrimage

In the Musical Pilgrimage, we feature Time Is Against Me by Probir Dutt.