endure
sat apr 29
An in-your-face, intimate snapshot of contemporary opera you and your friends will never forget.
Stay for 20 mins, or 2 x 20mins - or more if you're transfixed - for just $29
AUSTRALIAN CONTEMPORARY OPERA’S latest show, ENDURE plays out in an unlikely space: inside 333 Collins St, one of Melbourne’s most opulent office buildings.
ENDURE will immerse audiences in scenes of resilience, loss, hope and humanity. You can stay for just 20mins, an hour, or longer - up to you - ENDURE is set to run for six hours straight in a marathon-style repetitive presentation.
ENDURE examines the experiences of refugees in the face of a bureaucratic process that dehumanises and ‘others’ them.
The customer service face of policy - 'The Secretary' - meets people who are crying out for help. One by one they are told that they need to come back with another document. Alternating scenes, one set in 1950 and the other in 2023, deal with genuine frustration and incomprehension in the face of immovable policy: “computer says no”. And despite obstacles, the human spirit continues to be driven by hope, empathy and kindness, with operatic storytelling dialing the emotional impact to 11.
While ENDURE explores the story of one person desperately seeking a visa, within its broader themes are numerous situations where policy prevails over humanity.
ACOCo:
ENDURE
TEAM
These extraordinary people bring a wealth of international experience, expertise and skill to ACOCo's stories of today and tomorrow.
cast
Emily Burke - soprano
Heather Fletcher - mezzo soprano
Christopher Hillier - baritone
with
Alexandra Amerides
Uma Dobia
Daniel Felton
Elizabeth Green
Miriam Whiting-Reilly
Caitlin Rowe
Breanna Stuart
Caitlin Toohey
creative team
Linda Thompson - Artistic director/Co-director
Katie Smith - Co-director
Madeline Nibali - Costume design
with
Phillipa Safey
TBA
TBA
"the day will come...that day neither ink nor seal shall cage our souls...that day will come!"