Song for the Mardoowarra
Donation protected
Help us bring an original inclusive theatre work from the beginning of time to the oldest puppetry theatre festival in the world. From Broome Nyikina country to Charleville Mezieres France!
Song for the Mardoowarra is a puppetry theatre work for children age 6 + created by Gwen Knox (Big Mama Making Arts More Accessible Productions ) and Dr Anne Poelina.
A ceremony in 2014 exchanging river water from each river by elders of the Indigenous Nyikina people from the Fitzroy Valley in Western Australia and the elders of the French Ardennes was the impetus for this project to develop further understanding of the universal importance of both river health and the art of storytelling to connect with our natural environments.
The show has been accepted to present the next stage of development at the prestigious International Festival in Charleville Mezieres France in September 2019. Rehearsals will be with our partner organisations in Belgium. We are grateful to receive part of our costs to pay our professional actors and puppeteers through West Australian arts funding.
To fully cover the costs of taking this original work overseas we are seeking funds, specifically to create more pathways for training for young Indigenous actors to be part of this international artistic exchange and cover costs of airfares, fees, accommodation and technical assistance for the tour.
Song for the Mardoowarra tells part of the story from the Warloongarriy Law Songline. Long ago in the beginning of time, Woonyoomboo went searching for food and water and travelled between living water billabongs. Woonyooomboo was responsible for causing two giant serpents to escape from one of the billabongs, which carved a river and split it into two, forming parts of the landscape along the Mardoowarra – Fitzroy River. He calls everyone to come to the river and to know how important it is to value, respect and protect the river.
Nyikina people believe that the rainbow serpents still live in the river. The serpents are named Yoongoorrookoo. When people behave disrespectfully, Yoongoorrookoo can get very angry and may drown somebody or cause a flood. Yoongoorookoo and Woonyaoomboo meet another river who is not doing so well. This cautionary tale pays homage to the way that culture has shaped country and how country shapes culture.
This work compares shared stories and is a potent warning about the importance of caring for country and culture. It encourages us to begin listening to nature again.
Children have helped shape this work. It includes some of their stories that are told beside more ancient ones. “The Song for the Martuwarra” is sung by the children of Broome Primary School in Western Australia. These children's recordings will feature in France and Belgium as part of the River Health education aspect of the work where we present science, puppetry and dance workshops.
The show features Damon Lockwood, Traelyn Aikin, Sandra Umbagi Clarke, Marcus Cowora, Lena John Gomez and Gilles Verhaegen . Music composition is by Mark Coles Smith, Gwen Knox , James Gentle and an exciting new collaboration with Belgian artist Gilles Verhaegen and Marcus Corowa. It also features Jeannie Warby Nyikina Elder/voice over
Big MAMA Productions works with communities in:
-Health promotion through community theatre and the arts.
-Cross curricular projects in schools to tell stories. Using the arts to help create individual and community pride and more meaningful learning environments.
-Creation of large and small community events that help celebrate important aspects of that community such as, festivals, site specific processional theatre, any celebration that is designed and run in collaboration with the community.
-Training emerging artists and arts workers
www.gwenknox.com.au
www.marcuscorowa.com
www.indiindi.org
http://www.damonlockwood.com/
https://www.facebook.com/mewhyofficial/
Song for the Mardoowarra is a puppetry theatre work for children age 6 + created by Gwen Knox (Big Mama Making Arts More Accessible Productions ) and Dr Anne Poelina.
A ceremony in 2014 exchanging river water from each river by elders of the Indigenous Nyikina people from the Fitzroy Valley in Western Australia and the elders of the French Ardennes was the impetus for this project to develop further understanding of the universal importance of both river health and the art of storytelling to connect with our natural environments.
The show has been accepted to present the next stage of development at the prestigious International Festival in Charleville Mezieres France in September 2019. Rehearsals will be with our partner organisations in Belgium. We are grateful to receive part of our costs to pay our professional actors and puppeteers through West Australian arts funding.
To fully cover the costs of taking this original work overseas we are seeking funds, specifically to create more pathways for training for young Indigenous actors to be part of this international artistic exchange and cover costs of airfares, fees, accommodation and technical assistance for the tour.
Song for the Mardoowarra tells part of the story from the Warloongarriy Law Songline. Long ago in the beginning of time, Woonyoomboo went searching for food and water and travelled between living water billabongs. Woonyooomboo was responsible for causing two giant serpents to escape from one of the billabongs, which carved a river and split it into two, forming parts of the landscape along the Mardoowarra – Fitzroy River. He calls everyone to come to the river and to know how important it is to value, respect and protect the river.
Nyikina people believe that the rainbow serpents still live in the river. The serpents are named Yoongoorrookoo. When people behave disrespectfully, Yoongoorrookoo can get very angry and may drown somebody or cause a flood. Yoongoorookoo and Woonyaoomboo meet another river who is not doing so well. This cautionary tale pays homage to the way that culture has shaped country and how country shapes culture.
This work compares shared stories and is a potent warning about the importance of caring for country and culture. It encourages us to begin listening to nature again.
Children have helped shape this work. It includes some of their stories that are told beside more ancient ones. “The Song for the Martuwarra” is sung by the children of Broome Primary School in Western Australia. These children's recordings will feature in France and Belgium as part of the River Health education aspect of the work where we present science, puppetry and dance workshops.
The show features Damon Lockwood, Traelyn Aikin, Sandra Umbagi Clarke, Marcus Cowora, Lena John Gomez and Gilles Verhaegen . Music composition is by Mark Coles Smith, Gwen Knox , James Gentle and an exciting new collaboration with Belgian artist Gilles Verhaegen and Marcus Corowa. It also features Jeannie Warby Nyikina Elder/voice over
Big MAMA Productions works with communities in:
-Health promotion through community theatre and the arts.
-Cross curricular projects in schools to tell stories. Using the arts to help create individual and community pride and more meaningful learning environments.
-Creation of large and small community events that help celebrate important aspects of that community such as, festivals, site specific processional theatre, any celebration that is designed and run in collaboration with the community.
-Training emerging artists and arts workers
www.gwenknox.com.au
www.marcuscorowa.com
www.indiindi.org
http://www.damonlockwood.com/
https://www.facebook.com/mewhyofficial/
Organizer and beneficiary
Lena Gomez
Organizer
Eighty Mile Beach, WA
Gwen Knox
Beneficiary