An Arts Centre Melboure and Hey Dowling production
The Lark
Written by Daniel Keene
Directed by Matt Scholten

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “A masterclass in the power of theatre.” – scenstr

A NOTE FROM MATT SCHOLTEN

The privilege of being able to work this way is rare. This team, and this script, have been a dream.

In the midst of a challenging time, The Lark has been something of a restorative balm for me. There are moments in a creative life when a project arrives that doesn’t simply knock on the door – it steps inside, takes a seat at the table, and quietly begins to speak to you. This has been one of those projects.

The Lark asks us to consider what remains when memory becomes both refuge and prison. It is a play about survival, resilience and the stories we tell ourselves in order to continue.

It has been a couple of years that has demanded much of me: slowing down, listening more deeply, healing, and reconnecting with the quieter truths that sit beneath the noise of everyday life. There is something about Rose Grey’s story – her memories, her entrapment, her longing to be free of her own history – that speaks to the deeper currents many of us carry but rarely have the language to express.

Working on The Lark has reminded me of the sacred and essential nature of theatre. It isn’t simply about telling stories. It is about creating something that exists only between performers and audience for a brief and unrepeatable moment.

This play makes space for grief, beauty, humour, reflection and the complicated nature of being human. That is the kind of theatre that matters most.

To tour a new Australian work is a privilege for our small ensemble. I have been continually moved by the care, trust and artistry that everyone has brought to Rose’s story.

Daniel Keene has been a remarkable influence, collaborator and friend for almost two decades. He has made me a better theatre artist, and I am deeply grateful for his generosity and faith.

Noni Hazlehurst, my dear friend, working with you is always a joy. I still find it extraordinary that we have had the opportunity to come together again so soon after Mother, another production created with such love, care and kindness.

Our great friendship was never tested by the work; rather, it was strengthened through our shared trust in Daniel’s work and in one another. Thank you for keeping the faith and for your support and humanity. You are extraordinary.

To Darius, Emily and Richard, my heartfelt thanks. Your artistry, dedication and compassion for the world of the play have been extraordinary. You continue to inspire me. Again soon please?

Vivienne has been a steadfast supporter and advocate, both for me and for this production and great company. Nate, it is wonderful to know you are looking after us again on this tour.

Peta and John, thank you for your friendship, your hard work, your willingness to take another risk, and your faith in me. Thank you Lily Willmott for your work and support.

My sincere thanks also go to the small circle of friends whose support has carried us through these past two years, namely Andrea Mina, Matt Emond, Alec Hastie and Majid Shokor.

Many thanks to all the amazing venues around Australia, some of which are welcoming us back once again as a guest. We are proud and privileged to perform for you.

And to my Shayne: your love, generosity and the light you have brought into our life continue to sustain me. I am endlessly grateful to have you beside me.

May The Lark resonate with you in whatever way it needs to. May it remind you, as it has reminded me, that we are always more than our past. That even in stillness, at our core, transformation remains possible. And that sometimes the stories we need most are the ones quietly waiting to be heard.

Thank you for joining us.

A NOTE FROM DANIEL KEENE

1.

The whole is greater than the sum of its parts

                                                                        Aristotle

We are made of time. We are what we have experienced, what we have lost and what we have made, our relationships, our loves and our griefs. Layers of memories accumulate inside us like layers of emotional sediment. And like sediment, over time these layers fuse and solidify; they make a whole. The combination and interplay of these innumerable memories create something more than they mean individually, something more significant. They are the evidence of time as we have experienced it. Our memories and our identity are intertwined; they are what has made each of us who we are.

2.

The past is never dead. It’s not even past

                                                                        William Faulkner

The past continually resonates through our lives and it can influence how we understand the present. Perhaps we don’t see things as they are, but only as we are. To say that our perception is subjective is nothing new, but how is that subjectivity created, from where does it emerge? Our accumulated memories, continually evolving with our experience of life, lead us to particular assumptions and draw us to particular affinities. Our past is how we see the world.

3.

In The Lark, Rose Grey is trying to leave her past behind. For her, the past is a physical place; the pub she was born in, worked in, grew old in. This place has become what defines but also limits her. The world outside the pub comes in through the coloured glass panels in the front door. That coloured light has become a kind of binding enchantment, confining her. She circles over and over through the events and emotions of the past, time she no longer wants to live through, grief she no longer wants to feel.

Rose wants to be released. Perhaps if she tells the story of her life in The Lark, if she tells it well enough, it might be for the last time. She will be free of her past, and she will be free of her self.

As you from crimes would pardoned be,

Let your indulgence set me free.

                                                                        Prospero

                                                                        from Shakespeare’s The Tempest

About Hey Dowling

Hey Dowling is a boutique production company dedicated to creating, managing, and touring cutting-edge, contemporary, and accessible live performance experiences. 

Founded by Peta Spurling-Brown and John Glenn, two seasoned arts management professionals, Hey Dowling harnesses decades of industry knowledge to bring fresh, genre-defying productions to stage.

Inspired by the elation of shared mass experience, the Hey Dowling team is driven to amplify artistic expression and foster meaningful connections between performers and audiences. Their work spans the realms of cabaret, comedy, theatre, and music, unified by a commitment to edgy, intellectually sophisticated, and broadly appealing productions that fuel empathy, understanding, and a sense of communal joy.

The idea that the art is not what is on stage – that art is created in the space between the stage and the audience.

Noni Hazlehurst (Rose Grey)+

An artist living in Naarm (Melbourne)

Noni is one of Australia’s favourite and most respected actors and presenters. The celebrated film, theatre and television actor, beloved Playschool presenter, and host of Every Family Has a Secret and Better Homes and Gardens, has undoubtedly one of the most impressive and wide-ranging career portfolios in the business. On stage, as well as countless other appearances for the STC and MTC, she has performed Mother since 2015, touring the east coast and in seasons at Belvoir St in Sydney, HOTA on the Gold Coast, QPAC in Brisbane, and Arts Centre Melbourne (2024). She was awarded Best Actress at the Matilda Awards for Mother in 2018. Other recent credits include the feature films June Again, Ladies in Black, Truth and Sting, and the television series A Place to Call Home, The End, One Night, and Upright. In 2016, she was the second woman to be inducted into the Logies Hall of Fame. Among her many awards, she has won two Critics’ Circle Best Actress Awards, four AFI Awards – Best Supporting Actress for Little Fish and Waiting At The Royal, and Best Actress Awards for Fran and Monkey Grip, two Logies – Best Supporting Actress in a Mini-series for Waterfront and Best Supporting Actress in a Mini-series for Ride On Stranger.  In 1995 Noni received  an Order of Australia, and in 2007 she was bestowed a PhD honoris by her alma mater, Flinders University.

Daniel Keene (Writer)+

Katie Sfetkidis

Daniel has written for the theatre since 1979. He has won the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Drama twice, the NSW Premier’s Literary Award for Drama three times, the Adelaide Festival Award for Literature, the Wal Cherry Play of the Year Award, the Sumner Locke Elliot Prize (New York), the Queensland Premier’s Literary Award and the Sydney Myer Performing Arts Award. He has also been awarded the Kenneth Myer Medallion for the Performing Arts for his contribution to Australian theatre. His work has been presented at the Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide International Arts Festivals and at Melbourne Theatre Company and Sydney Theatre Company. Since 2000 over 80 productions of his work have been presented in Europe, predominantly in France. In 2016 Daniel was appointed to the rank of Chevalier de I’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Ministry of Culture.

Matt Scholten (Director)+

Byron J Scullin

Matt is a director, producer, writer, and lecturer and is the Artistic Director for award-winning, prolific independent theatre company If Theatre. Matt is a graduate of the Victorian College of the Arts and the University of Melbourne and has directed for Melbourne Theatre Company, La Mama Theatre, Belvoir Street Theatre, Queensland Performing Arts Centre, Queensland Theatre, JUTE, Playlab, TheatreWorks, Tasmanian Theatre Company and many others. Matt’s theatre work has been nominated for two Helpmann Awards, four Green Room Awards, the Australian Performing Arts Centre Association’s Drover Award, and If Theatre won the 2015 Drama Victoria Award for Best Production for Mother, and their co-production of The Campaign was nominated for four Tasmanian Theatre Awards, winning one. Matt’s debut short film Belonging, based on the play, won the Melbourne Queer Film Festival award for Best Documentary. He has taught at the VCA, QUT, USQ, Griffith and Melbourne Universities. Matt is currently producing, writing and developing a series of creative projects for theatre, film and television.

Key Information

To ensure patrons enjoy the performance, management asks you to note:

• Camera and mobile devices should not be used during the performance
• Switch off alarms and mobile phones prior to the performance

To ensure patrons enjoy the performance, management asks you to note:

• Camera and mobile devices should not be used during the performance
• Switch off alarms and mobile phones prior to the performance

The management reserves the right to refuse admission and ask patrons to leave, also to make any alterations to the cast which may be rendered necessary by illness of other unavoidable causes.
Patrons are advised that the ILLAWARRA PERFORMING ARTS CENTRE has an EMERGENCY EVACUATION PROCEDURE, a FIRE ALARM system and EXIT passageways.
In case of an alert, patrons should remain calm, look for the closest GREEN EXIT sign, listen to and comply with directions given by the trained in-house attendants and move in an orderly fashion to the open spaces outside the building.
The Illawarra Performing Arts Centre is a company limited by guarantee and supported by Wollongong City Council.

Merrigong is dedicated to delivering experiences that are relevant and impactful to the diverse people of our region. We invest in a range of programs with community groups, schools and artists that deliver tangible outcomes through paid residencies, employment and the development of new theatre work.

There are many ways that you can support this work, from tax-deductible donations, to corporate partnerships, to becoming part of our team of highly-valued volunteers. Your contribution can help us build a brighter future for artists, audiences and our community.