A piece of musical theatreBased on the book by Shaun Tan

Arts Centre Melbourne and National Theatre of Parramatta present

Relaxed Performance Visual Story

UPCOMING ACCESSIBLE PROGRAMSThroughout the year Arts Centre Melbourne presents a captivating program of inclusive performances—accessible for everyone—by some of the best Australian and international companies.

Arts Centre Melbourne presents programs and performances that are accessible, including Relaxed Performances and events that are Auslan Interpreted, Audio Described, Tactile Tours, Highly Visual and Wheel-chair accessible. An Assistive Hearing system is available in our venues and Companion Card holders are eligible for a complimentary compan-ion ticket.

Check our website for details on upcoming Relaxed Performances and access services.

Upcoming Events

Arts Centre Melbourne and Australian Music Vault present

Laser Beak Man

By David Morton, Nicholas Paine and Tim Sharp with music by Sam Cromack (Ball Park Music)19 - 21 September Auslan interpreted performance - Friday 20 September 7PMRelaxed Performance - Saturday 21 September 1PMCaptioned & Audio Described Performance - Saturday 21 September 7PMTactile Tour - Saturday 21 September 5:30PMRelaxed Performance for Schools (Years 5 to 12) – Thursday 19 September 11AM

Arts Centre Melbourne presents a CDP Kids & Salspot Production

Spot

Based on the books by Eric Hill 13 – 17 November Auslan interpreted performance - Friday 15 November 10AMRelaxed Performance - Saturday 16 November 12PM

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Introduction

2. The Production

3. The Theatre

4. The Performance

1

INTRODUCTION

Relaxed Performance

Arts Centre Melbourne is committed to providing performances that allow everyone to experience the wonder of theatre. This Relaxed Performance is especially designed to welcome visitors with disability or sensory sensitivities, their friends and families to the theatre.

The atmosphere is ‘relaxed’, with some house lights remaining on during the performance. A quiet space will be available in the foyer if a break is needed. Enthusiasm is embraced and it’s okay to move during the performance!

Contact

This visual resource has been prepared by Arts Centre Melbourne’s Access & Inclusion team. If you would like any additional information in the lead up to your visit, please contact Arts Centre Melbourne on 1300 182 183 during business hours.

2

THE PRODUCTION

Venue

This production of The Red Tree will be performed at the Fairfax Studio, which is inside Arts Centre Melbourne.

Length

The play is 60 minutes with no interval.

Age Recommendation

Suitable for ages 7+. Families are encouraged to review warnings and talk to staff in order to assess appropriateness of content.

Photography

Production photographs by Noni Carroll from the National Theatre of Parramatta production, 2017.

3

WARNINGS & GUIDELINES

Content Warnings

• At times the lighting on the stage will be dimmed and the stage will be a little darker. There will also be some flashing lights to create effects like lighting.

• Live music is performed throughout the show. At times the music can get loud.

• There is a scary looking Fish puppet who speaks in an eerie voice. The Fish is a puppet and if you look closely you will see two puppeteers, dressed all in black, who make the Fish move.

Theatre Guidelines

• Photography is not permitted during the performance, however if you need to use a device (i.e. iPad) to assist with communication, please inform the ushers. It’s always fine to use a device in the foyer or quiet areas.

• During the Relaxed Performance, a relaxed attitude is taken to movement, noise and eating/drinking in the auditorium (this is okay).

• If you need to take a break during the show, you are welcome to come out into the foyer area. A quiet space will be available, with low lighting and sensory items.

4

THE THEATREThe Red Tree is a musical that is being performed at Arts Centre Melbourne. The building has a tall spire on top.

5

THE BUILDINGWhen you get inside the building you will see lots of other people who are also going to see shows. Perhaps they are seeing The Red Tree like you are.

You will also see people wearing black uniforms. They are called ushers. The ushers can help you with directions or answer any questions you may have about the performance or Arts Centre Melbourne.

6

BEFORE THE PLAYBefore you go inside the theatre, you will need a ticket. You may already have your ticket, or you may need to collect them from the Box Office.

There may be other people and families waiting to collect their tickets, too.

7

FIND YOUR WAYThere are many theatres inside Arts Centre Melbourne. Today you are going to the Fairfax Studio.

The friendly ushers will help you find your way.

You can walk down the stairs, or take the elevator down to Level 3 to get to the Fairfax Studio.

8

FOYERThe foyer is where we wait for the doors of the theatre to open. While we wait, the actors are inside the theatre getting ready for their performance and the backstage crew are preparing the stage.

Before going inside the theatre, you may like to have something to eat or drink or use the bathrooms.

9

SEATINGThe doors to the theatre will open about 30 minutes before the start of the show. You can go into the theatre and find your seat early if you want to.

You will see an usher waiting at the door to the theatre. You will need to show the usher your ticket before you go inside.

Printed on your ticket is a row (letter) and seat number. This is the seat you will be sitting in to watch the performance. The usher can help direct you to your seat, or you might be able to find it yourself!

10

DURING THE PLAYThe play will go for almost one hour. There is no interval but if you need to take a break during the show you can leave your seat and come out to the foyer area. You can do this whenever you need to.

There will be a Quiet Area in the foyer that has comfortable beanbags and nice lighting where you can relax if you want to.

You can return to the theatre and watch the rest of the show whenever you feel ready.

11

FINAL EXPERIENCE At the end of the performance the audience will clap to say thank you to the performers.

You can clap, too, if you’d like to.

12

THE PERFORMANCEThe Red Tree is a musical. A musical is a performance that tells a story through music and song. In this show the music is played live by a band. You will the band on the stage. In the band are three musicians who play instruments and sing.

This performance is based on a book by Shaun Tan. Have you read the book? During the show you might recognise some of Shaun Tan’s drawings. The costumes, the set, projections on the stage and even some very cool puppets are all based on the pictures from the book. After the show you might like to read the book and find all the drawings they used in the show.

13

RISE AND SHINE, AVA! The hero of this story is a girl called Ava.

She is a shy girl who doesn’t want to leave her bedroom.

14

SOMETHING FOLLOWING, FOLLOWING, FOLLOWING … Red leaves fall from the ceiling and onto Ava’s bedroom floor.

The lighting will get a little darker and the music might sound a little scary. You will see a big, scary looking Fish at Ava’s window. All of this frightens Ava a lot.

15

IMAGINE GOING OUTSIDEThe leaves are cleared off the stage by a noisy leaf blower. You might want to cover your ears if it’s too loud!

You will hear the sounds of a city and spooky music.

Ava is feeling anxious and frightened about leaving her room; have you ever felt like that?

16

AVA WON’T LEAVE HER ROOM Ava is very frightened by all the noise and crowds of people and the scary looking Fish.

She feels safe and much better when she is inside her wardrobe. She finds a little snail in the wardrobe and sings a song.

17

HELLO? ECHO!Ava has a wonderful imagination. Do you have a god imagination, too?

She puts a fishbowl on her head and pretends to be a scuba diver swimming deep in the ocean. You’ll notice the lighting turns blue so it looks like she is underwater.

18

WONDERFUL THINGS ARE PASSING YOU BYLook! The snail is back. It has grown so much bigger.

Ava doesn’t notice it but she does notice the parade that is happening right outside her window!

You will hear happy, fun music and see colourful streamers from Ava’s window. Ava becomes sad because she can’t go out there and join in with the fun. She sings a sad song about feeling different to everyone else.

19

THE BAND Ava’s bedroom turns into the stage of a rock concert! There is bright lighting and loud music. You will see two musicians playing guitars, They will ask the audience to clap along to the music. You can clap if you want to.

20

SING SOMETHING! The musicians want Ava to sing with them but she is very confused and shy. Poor Ava doesn’t know what to do.

You will hear people laughing at Ava and the music will start to sound a little eerie.

21

EVERYTHING IS ALL RIGHT NOWBut the eerie sounds won’t last long, because Ava suddenly finds herself at the beach in a big paper boat! You will hear happy music and the sounds of the beach. The musicians join Ava on the stage. One plays a drum. The other plays a ukulele.

22

THE STORMOh no! A storm is coming. The lights flash and it looks like lightning. You will hear sounds like thunder and rain and wind. Ava’s boat flats away. Poor Ava shouts for HELP!

23

THE FISH The scary-looking fish is back. He has a low and spooky voice. You can cover your ears if you don’t like the sound of his voice.

The Fish chases Ava and Ava screams.

You might feel scared just like Ava but remember the Fish is a puppet. Look very closely and you will see two people dressed all in black controlling the fish and making it move and speak. They are called puppeteers.

24

INSIDE THE FISHAva gets trapped inside the Fish’s belly! Can you believe it? It is very dark and slimy in there. You will hear the drip, drip, dripping of water.

25

ROLL THE DICE The Fish speaks to Ava and laughs at her in a mean, scary way. He is not nice. Ava is afraid she might never get out of there. She sings a sad song.

26

STRONG AND BRAVEBut Ava is smart and she finds a way to get free.

The projections on the stage start to spin – it might look like the whole stage is spinning and spinning!

When the spinning stops you will see that Ava is back in her bed – just like at the start of the play. The band sings a song about Ava being a strong and brave girl.

27

JUST AS YOU IMAGINED IT WOULD BEAs Ava sings you will see a beautiful Red Tree growing bigger and bigger in her bedroom.

At the end of the song, the lights on stage will fade but the leaves of the Red Tree will continue to glow.

28

THE END At the end of the performance the lights will get bright and the actor, musicians and puppeteers will come to the front of the stage to take a bow. This is called the curtain call. This is when the audience claps and cheers to thank everyone for their performance. You can clap and cheer if you want to.

The Red Tree shows us that even when we feel sad or lonely or afraid, there is always hope. What do you hope or dream for? Write your hopes and dreams in the red leaves. You may like to ask your family and friends to write their hopes and dreams in some of the leaves, too.