Magic of Aboriginal art
Coming face to face with an ancient culture at New South Wales’ Blue Mountains gives the opportunity to delve into the wonderful world of Aboriginal art
“WALTZING Matilda, Waltzing Matilda you’ll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me.” The tune from the show plays in my head long after the production ends and I subconsciously continue humming the delightful melody on the way up the escalator to lunch at Restaurant 1128. Although I’ve watched this delightful Waradah Australian Centre production several years back, I couldn’t resist the temptation of watching it again after the friendly B&B owner in Leura told me about the recent improvements to its storyline.
Making the trip to this scenic part of the Blue Mountains and visiting The Lookout at Echo Point for the second time in four years has been a good decision as the show didn’t disappoint. Unlike the earlier version, this exciting new performance encompasses, for the first time, some of the stories from white Australian history.
Traditionally, the performances have concentrated only on the indigenous part of the Australian story. These new additions, unveiled in September last year, now give visitors a more comprehensive picture that incorporates both Aboriginal and white history.
Tucking into my slow braised Angus beef brisket, the story of Australia — the Great Southern Land slowly comes to life once again in my mind. Starting with the traditional Aboriginal smoking ceremony, the show was a delightful combination of dancing, singing and live acting. Other key indigenous tales retained from the previous production included explanations involving the origins of the didgeridoo, Aboriginal dancing and the dreamtime legend of the Three Sisters.
This updated version then went on to relate important events that took place in Australia after Captain Cook’s historic voyage to the southeastern coast of Australia on April 19, 1770. Among the significant events retold in this segment were crossing the Mountains, the Gold Rush, Banjo Paterson’s writing of Waltzing Matilda, World War One, the Depression, building the Harbour Bridge and post-WWII migration.
The 30-minute live theatre-styled performance was accompanied by the latest multimedia software and hardware, which projected related images onto three strategically positioned screens. In addition, a selection of programmable languages enhanced the experience of foreign visitors who formed a sizeable proportion of the audience.
In the end, everyone present gave the 10 performers, all of whom Blue Mountain locals, a long standing ovation. It was a thoroughly enjoyable presentation made even more memorable with full period costume.
After finishing the last spoonful of my ice cream trio with macadamia shortbread dessert, I head back downstairs to the Waradah Australian Centre Art Gallery located directly opposite the theatre. There, I meet with marketing and gallery manager, Bonnie Dastyari.
The story of Aboriginal art and its relevance to parts of the performance I watched earlier slowly start to unravel as Dastyari walks me through the many colourful artistic work on display at the gallery. “Aboriginal culture dates back as far back as 80,000 years during the time when the first settlements were established here in Australia. Today,