Curtains for the Curtain Calls?

The recent announcement of nominees for this year's ATG Curtain Call awards has come out. Doubtless over the next few days there will be many a congratulatory message left on people's Facebook walls and a few grumbling ones in status updates. (There's already one in my news feed!). It's times like these that make me wonder if the awards are a good or bad thing for Adelaide Theatre. This is not a slap against the ATG (Adelaide Theatre Guide)- they created these awards with the absolute best and noble intentions (even if their categories leave a lot to be desired- I'll never forget at the first awards ceremony the bile I forced down my throat when I heard one of the reviewers for the ATG declare to all and sundry from the podium that it was the onstage performances people remember the most so that's what's being honoured and nothing else- hence the reason there was no backstage awards like Best Director, Best Costumes- now there are a few minor dribbles like "Best Technical"- but rather the mindset that turned us into competitive and slightly narky theatre folk.

It would be incredibly naive of me to think that the awards were the reason Adelaide Theatre has recently become more separated than what it was. This is not a fault of the companies but rather some of the individuals that populate them. Now they have a reason to get narky ("Oh the Joe Bloggs company got nominated yet again- ho hum- no surprise given that one of the reviewers is on their committee", "Oh gosh what a surprise to see Fred Nerk nominated yet again, seriously he's SO overrated"). Before, all the recognition the hard-working folk of Adelaide Theatre got was a good review and at the end of the year a paragraph in the Oscarts. Now there's a CEREMONY!!! and AWARD TROPHIES!!!! and CLAIRE HOOPER!!!!

I realize this probably comes across as sour grapes because none of the shows I was involved in got nominated, but to be honest when I see what these awards have done to us it makes me sad. I just don't think we're ready for these awards. There have been a lot of simmering tensions for a while (long before the awards started) but these seem to bring out the worst (and best) in us. When the inevitable winners are announced, there'll be lots of backslapping and faint praise I'm sure.

Actually I think one of my MD colleagues summed it up perfectly when he said "Nobody supports anyone else these days yet expects everyone to come and see their shows". He's right (and I'm as guilty as anyone- although I do try and make it to a large number of shows throughout the year).

There's a lot more I could say on where Adelaide Theatre is going wrong, but you know what? It's easy to bitch so how about I finish by saying a few nice things about recent Adelaide Theatre and the people that populate it?

What I AM loving about Adelaide Theatre now is the daring of companies to do more recent shows that haven't made it to Adelaide's theatres before. Shows like "Curtains", "Honk!", "Spamalot", "All Shook Up" and "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" (that's just this year!) have proved a boom for performers and audiences alike. 8 years ago you would have said that Adelaide audiences don't embrace new things. The large crowds that attend these shows actually prove that they do! This can only be good. I'll also say that the level and quality of the productions are of a very high standard all round (both on and offstage). That's something I LOVE about Adelaide Theatre. So what if we have a budget of only $15,000? Let's stage Miss Saigon! That "can do" attitude of companies is a healthy and good thing to see. It's also good to see the immense pool of young talent we have (again, both on and offstage). I don't think Adelaide Theatre will ever have THAT particular well dry up.

Time for me to take my bow (and dodge a few rotten tomatoes).....