Windmill Theatre and State Theatre Company of South Australia have won a prestigious CHASS Australia Prize for their multi award-winning co-production Pinocchio, in the category of Distinctive Work for a Performance.
The CHASS Australia Prizes are awarded by the Council for the Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences to honour exceptional artistic performance, exhibition, film, television show, play, composition or practical contribution to arts policy. The awards are intended to draw international attention to the achievements of Australians in the sector.
“It’s wonderful to see this work achieve such success,” says Windmill Theatre’s General Manager/Producer, Sandy Verschoor. “To be recognised by CHASS is a huge honour amongst many other incredibly talented nominees. This is such a wonderful accolade and a credit to the creative team led by our incredibly talented Director Rosemary Myers.”
To date, Pinocchio has played to over 35,000 young people around Australia and the world. It premiered with a successful season in Adelaide in 2012 and has since played critically acclaimed seasons in Melbourne, Sydney and most recently, a sell-out season at the New Victory Theatre in New York City, representing a major coup for both South Australian arts companies.
The celebrated family musical has also won Helpmann Awards for ‘Best New Australian Work’ and ‘Best Presentation for Children’ and a South Australian Ruby Award for Best Work.
“It’s been a joy to watch our production grow and grow like the wooden boy’s nose,” says State Theatre Company Executive Director/Producer Rob Brookman. “From its inception on the Adelaide stage to Malthouse in Melbourne, the Sydney Opera House and most recently treading the boards of New York, Pinocchio has been hugely popular with audiences and critics – but, above all, has shown that a distinctively Australian take on a universal story can transcend period, convention and geography.”
Windmill and State Theatre Company are currently developing a new family musical Rumpelstiltskin, which features Paul Capsis. Set to premiere in October 2016, the same creative team will place their stamp on this classic tale with their unique brand of theatrical spectacular, rocking music and supreme silliness.
For more information about Pinocchio, visit www.windmill.org.au for details. For more information about CHASS and the 2015 Award Winners, visit: www.chass.org.au for details.
Image: Pinocchio – photo by Brett Boardman