I wonder if many people know about Wobbegongs. What they are and whether they are potentially dangerous to humans.
It’s a shark. Wobbegong is the collective name for 12 species of carpet sharks (so named because they are camouflaged like carpet) that grow to a bit over a meter and dwell on shallow ocean floors around Australia. They have “beards” and sharp needle-like teeth. So yes, they can harm a human but only if disturbed and it’s just a nasty bite. Nothing deadly. However, if they do latch on, apparently, they are hard to shake off, so that could be a problem.
This is relevant as a Wobbegong is referred to several times during the hour-long Whale Chorus production MEET ME AT THE BATHS.
This site and theme specific production is part of Newcastle’sNew Annual, a 10-day art, music and ideas festival, running from the 26 September to 5 October, whose vision is to “put Newcastle on the radar nationally and internationally, as a creative city where exciting, ambitious and accessible contemporary art and culture grows and thrives.”
https://newannual.com/explore/events
Invited by Tory Loudon (New Annual Festival Director) to create a new play for the Newcastle Ocean Baths, Playwright Ang Collins and Whale Chorus Artistic Director Janie Gibson set up a booth at the baths titled “Writer Collecting Local Stories” and were overwhelmed with beautiful stories of connection, healing and fun over the course of six months. These stories have been selected, interwoven and refined into a series of scenes presented by 4 actors all around the baths, looping around one another and linked by beautiful atmosphericmusic/soundscape created by Liesl Pieterse.
All dialogue and non-diegetic sound come through headsets, preset and distributed prior to the event as Barney Donaghy, Jim Lawson, Katia Molino and Stephanie Rochet each presentseveral different characters through the course of the hour-long event.
Jim Lawson’s central character, longtime lifeguard, Rip most encompasses and reflects the overarching sentiment and atmosphere of the work. “…everything is cyclical…The water comes in and the water goes out. Just enjoy the swim.” All his siblings and family learnt to swim at the baths, and he loves his job; the expansive ocean view right down to Norah Head on a good day, the whales that come and go, the regulars and the holiday makers. Sometimes he doesn’t want to leave at the end of the working day.
Katia Molino brings even more spiritual elements with one of her main characters, Sophia, an older woman with a psychic gift and a deep love and appreciation of the natural world and in particular, seagulls, while Barney Donaghy represents the younger generation, irrepressible and at times irresponsible, but also deeply connected to the baths, its people and the surrounding environment. Stephanie Rochet’s characters were more of the dispossessed and grieving; the immigrant missing her mum, the water shy Brazilian student, the widow, missing her husband.
Plus, all the other vignettes – the four bathing cap wearing regulars who are a little delayed because one had a frisky husband that morning. The story about a group of girls who dress up as mermaids, inspiring a disheartened divorcee to embrace some fun and joy. And did a posh new Bishop of Newcastle Cathedral really wash through the drain of the pool one cleaning day, get flushed across metres of oyster encrusted rocks and pop up completely unscathed?
Then there’s unscripted moments, provided by the rest of the bathing public who happen to be there at the same time. The frisson created by wondering whether the long wet suited swimmer languorously swimming laps was part of the performance, would the guy in the motorized wheelchair interact with the actors. Those 2 preteen boys running, jumping, diving and sitting on the blocks were enhancing the general atmosphere so much that there was some speculation as to whether they were part of the crew.
Did the surfie with a surfboard tucked under his arm walking past the headset wearing audience seated on the concrete bleachers know that at that moment he too had become an actor in this event?
All this non scripted, non-rehearsed ambient and natural activity lifted this production out of the realms of theatre and into something else; it’s a homage to the Newcastle Baths. Newcastle Ocean Baths opened in 1913, with an Art Deco pavilion added in the 1920’s. This pavilion became a local landmark and its open air changerooms iconic as thousands of people claimed it as a community hub and learned to swim there. It was listed on the National Trust Register in the 1990s and more recently the State Heritage Register, leading to ongoing restoration efforts to preserve the site.
It truly does have a magnificent view as well.
Whale Chorus has made a commitment to not only encourage local storytellers and theatremakers but to also use places and spaces that are not traditional theatre spaces. Fig trees, parks and local community halls have all been transformed into spaces for reinvented Shakespearean work and original works.
MEET ME AT THE BATHS is the most adventurous yet and a beautiful utilisation of an already grand setting. New Annual also has SOAK: Live at the Baths there from 27 September – 4 October, with artists such as Tom Thum, DOBBY, Freyja Garbett and many others lining up to play at sunset in front of the pool, with the ocean as the backdrop. Fantastic.
The concrete bleachers don’t have shade, so one is advised to wear a hat, sunglasses, sunscreen and protective clothing, as well as take some water and a cushion if you need a little more comfort from the concrete.
Now back to the Wobbegong story that loops through the production. During one king tide a Wobbegong washed into the main pool, causing some panic and consternation. Rip, the lifeguard dismissed its presence, publicly announcing that it was a prank and not to be believed. However, others do see it and towards the end of the production we hear it. The validity of how it is returned to the ocean, however, remains in doubt. You decide. It is quite a spiritual production after all, encouraging us to feel more at one with nature and the natural cycle of things, so anything is possible.
MEET ME AT THE BATHS, directed by Janie Gibson and written by Ang Collins, produced by Whale Chorus is presented twice daily 11am and 2pm until 4 October at the Newcastle Ocean Baths. Tickets start at $25.
Bookings can be made via the New Annual Website
