Albany premieres Signs of Life

The world premiere of the second play by Australian author and former Albany boy Tim Winton enjoyed a successful opening at Albany Entertainment Centre on the weekend.

The Black Swan State Theatre Company brought its latest production to Albany following the success of Rising Water, Winton’s first play, at the venue last year.

Signs of Life ran two preview performances before its official opening in the Princess Royal Theatre on Saturday night.

Black Swan general manager Shane Colquhoun said the production, which arrived in Albany on Monday with a set so new it had not yet been assembled on-stage, was perfect for the AEC.

“We had a fantastic week,” he said.

“It is only Albany that we would consider world premiering a production of that scale, because of the facilities and because of Garry (Snowdon, AEC general manager), because we have that relationship.

“It went really well. We were pleased with the end result and it also gives us the opportunity to look at the production over the next four weeks, as well, and fine-tune it before it comes into Perth.”

The production will tour regional WA before opening in Perth on July 31 and heading to the Sydney Opera House later in the year.

“It’s quite unusual for a major company like ours to leave their normal home, where they perform (for opening night),” Mr Colquhoun said.

“It’s a fairly new initiative to take something and world premiere it in another venue… I think that tells you the level of faith we have in both the venue, its facilities, and the management within the venue.”

He said Black Swan were already in talks with Mr Snowdon and the team at the AEC about touring to Albany again in its 2013 season.

Liz.newell@albanyadvertiser.com