Aviator extraordinaire Sir Charles Edward Kinsgford Smith disappeared during an attempted record-breaking flight from England to Australia on the 8th November 1935. While many of us may not be able to recall the historical details of the disappearance and death we all have heard of the great Kingsford Smith and the impact of his disppearance. It is on the date of his disappearance, 80 years ago November, that this new piece of Australian immersive theatre, We Are The Ghosts of The Future, is set. It is part of the Rocks Village Bizzare and presented by Blancmange and writers 7-On.
Audience members are encouraged to wander from room to room as they explore ‘the boarding house’ and watch the fourteen actors with one musician tell their tales of loves, losses and secrets offset against the national mourning for the loss of our flying hero Kingsford Smith. The characters of this pre-war Sydney comprise a young boy who idolises Kingsford Smith, a war bride, a kind gentleman (or as we would name him these days, a backroom abortionist), running through the building are street urchin children and other pre-war Sydneysiders living in that boarding house.
The Rocks Discovery Museum was selected for the set for We Are The Ghosts Of The Future, as part of the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority’s The Rocks Pop-Up, whose goal is to develop innovative uses for temporarily vacant buildings. It posed an interesting challenge for production designer Hugh O’Connor and Alex Berlage (Lighting) who engaged with the use of canny lighting and patchwork styled clothing, curtains or sheets artfully draped over displace cases and panelling or walls to build this boarding house of yester-year.
With a talented and captivating cast, We Are The Ghosts Of The Future also features Leofric Kingsford-Smith, the grandnephew of Kingsford-Smith. A seasoned theatre and television performer, Kingsford-Smith boasts credentials from London’s West End to the Sydney Opera House.
We Are The Ghosts of the Future opened on 13th November 2015 and will show through to 28th November.
It is a truly beguiling and poignant experience, revealing a vivid pilgrimage into Sydney’s rich past. Make sure you grab your ticket to this provoking piece of immersive theatre!
Cast: Ali Aitken, Darcy Brown, Emily Eskell, Alicia Gonzalez, Sam Green, Robbie King, Leofric Kingsford-Smith, Michael McStay, Celine Oudin, Cody Ross, Elini Schumacher, Eliza Scott, Donna Sizer and Pierce Wilcox
Director Harriet Gillies; Production Designer Hugh O’Connor; Sound Designer Alex Berlage; Musician Laurence Rosier-Staines
Writers – 7-ON: Donna Abela, Vanessa Bates, Hilary Bell, Noëlle Janaczewska, Verity Laughton, Ned Manning, Catherine Zimdahl
Producer– Stephen Carnell
What: We Are The Ghosts Of The Future
When: 6.30pm on 13, 14, 17 to 21, and 24 to 28 November. 8.30pm on 13, 14, 20, 21, 27 and 28 November. Preview at 6.30pm on 12 November
Where: The Rocks Discovery Museum, 4-8 Kendall Lane, The Rocks
Tickets: From Eventbrite or at the door: http://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/we-are-the-ghosts-of-the-future-is-a-visit-with-vanished-sydney-tickets-18728413188.
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