The Tempest
9 January 2012 – 4 February 2012
The Tempest is celebrating its 401st anniversary in 2012 and yet our landmark Aboriginal/European production shows how the play is as pertinent today as it was when first written in 1611.
Full of magic, myth and murder the story centres on Prospero, the deposed Duke of Milan, whose evil brother set him adrift with his infant daughter Miranda, in a leaky ship 16 years before the play begins. Prospero and Miranda are washed ashore on an island and make a home there by enslaving two aboriginals of the island: Caliban who represents the land, and Ariel who embodies the air. Prospero uses his mystical, white magic to control Caliban, Ariel and all the spirits of the island. Fortuitously, Prospero’s brother and the King of Italy sail past the island on their way back from a wedding; this is where the actual play begins, as Prospero raises up a terrible “tempest” and shipwrecks his persecutors in order to extract revenge.
The play develops into a love story as well, when Prospero manipulates a meeting between his now-16 year old daughter and the King of Italy’s son, Prince Ferdinand; as expected, the two fall in love but are romantically kept separated. At the same time Caliban is led astray by two drunken sailors who introduce him to alcoholic drink and corrupt his innocent nature. The rest of play cuts back and forth between the rescued royal household, Prospero’s magical machination of events, and the manoeuvrings of Ariel and Caliban to be free.
The thematic concerns of the play centre around issues of colonial acquisition and usurpation of land, the displacement of aboriginal peoples, the reculturalisation of the indigenous population and the ensuing contention of enslavement and aboriginal spirituality. These issues are still pertinent today as they were 400 years ago, and are highlighted in this groundbreaking production.
Tickets may be purchased from the tickets page on the website. Follow this link also for pricing details, which go on sale from 17th October 2011.
Special Note: Discounts are available for multiple bookings
