Jane Birkin, Dreamers and School Dance

As Mad March comes to its close, I thought I would share some of my favorite moments from the craziness that was our full on festival season.

 Jane Birkin Images from style.com

I was very happy to spend the final night at Barrio and see the divine and lovely Jane Birkin singing the songs of Serge Gainsbourg. She was so gorgeous, so graceful and happy to be in Adelaide for the Festival's Dreamers Program. Full of energy, Jane came out running through the crowd, singing as she went. Her stories about Serge were both touching and funny, she really channeled his energy and love. Her band, made up of incredible musicians plucked from Japan have gone on a whirlwind tour with her leaving their own careers behind, all the while raising funds and awareness after the devastating nuclear disaster in Japan. Jane is known of course as being one of the most stylish women in the world. I remember seeing pictures of her in my Mum's fashion magazine collection from the 70s, and loving her style. Mostly known for the iconic Hermes Birkin bag, to me Jane's style is jeans, a t-shirt and flats- elegant, simple and beautiful. For the show she wore simple black trousers and an over-sized white cotton shirt. Easy, style and grace. If you scroll through my blog or Tumblr you will see it is no secret that I absolutely love Charlotte Gainsbourg (Jane's daughter) and it is easy to see why with parents like that! Fireworks finished off the show, much to the surprise and delight of the performers, with Jane declaring that the smell of fireworks were one of the best things in the world.

I loved Windmill Theatre's production of School Dance, I laughed so much. The pumping 80s pop soundtrack and awkward dance moves were so much fun. It was great to look around and watch people wipe away tears of laughter through out the incredible show. I sat next to a bunch of younger teenage boys, who'd gone along with a school group. Before the show started they were making comments about how lame theatre was, but were soon blown away, when they show began. A few scenes in they were cheering, and did not stop! In the foyer one wall had been painted in chalk paint, inviting people to share their thoughts after the show. Kids tore past me to run over and write/ draw with incredible enthusiasm. I took a few snaps of some of the cute remarks. If or when the show tours, please go and see it, it is such a delight. You will never look at a nerdy kid quite the same again, and if you have ever felt even a little bit invisible, you will stop! 

The Festival season ended with a beautiful bang. No surprises there. Until next time... x

Wearing: Zara blazer, Alice McCall T-shirt, Cheap Monday jeans, Tristan Blair bow shoes, Mimco Imperial Itsy Bitsy Bag, Mimco headband.

Vintage wool hat, Alice McCall shorts get similar here, Mollini ankle boots, Low Luv X Erin Wasson Thunderbird Etched Cuff, and Neck piece from Wild Child Style Lab.

Photos taken by Emma Craig, myself, Jane Birkin images sourced from style.com

Post Melbourne Sads and The Haunting of Daniel Gartrell

Little bit feeling like my man Woody here, having had such a great time in Melbourne last week and now being back in reality town! Ha ha. Actually, it's not all doom and gloom, I am getting a little dramatic. Got some pretty full on weeks ahead, as I cram in as much fun and work before I take off again. Getting some secondments organized is pretty exciting. There are some really incredible people out there. Also super excited for the whole PQ event, and some of the great workshops I am going to be doing.

While in Melbourne I had the pleasure of seeing a preview of Straight Jacket Productions new show The Haunting of Daniel Gartrell. A friend of mine had done some animation for it, and it just so happened that I had designed set and costumes for it while at WAAPA with the play write Reg Cribb. It was so interesting to see how it was staged, the design and how our interpretations differed. They did an amazing job, the set was like a collage of doors, surrounded by dried suburban scrub. This not only afforded a lot of depth for the lighting designer, but created this kind of lost world sort of feel. As our design had been an un-realised project, we had had to cast according to our interpretation of the characters, and the funny thing was I remember using an image of John Wood as a reference. The cast were brilliant, it was amazing to see the show come to fruition, since I knew the script so well. If you are in Melbourne, I would head on down to 45 Downstairs and check it out. The link above has the show dates and so on. I will add some pics from my own design below...








Daniel

Craig

Sarah