FRANK CHRISTIE FRANK CLARK!
Family man, theatre historian, teacher and musical comedy writer, Peter Fleming, is a man of many talents, but his current passion is his new project, Frank Christie Frank Clarke!
The true story of bushranger, Frank Clarke/Christie/ Gardiner, is tangled, twisted and stretched to include soft shoe shuffling police, an aspiring soprano girlfriend and a nemesis, Blind Freddy Pottinger, a bad shot who wants to be a performing marksman.
When Fleming discusses this latest creation words like, ‘light’ ‘joyful’ and ‘hoot’ drop from his lips. He describes the musical as a ‘larrikin wild show’ with the cast swapping hats and capering around the audience with abandon.
Peter was inspired by the Nimrod Theatre productions of the late 1960s and early 1970s and seeks to recapture the casual, less pedantic nature of those performances. His quest is to re-establish the typical ‘Aussie’ character of cheeky insouciance.
Fleming is generous with praise, describing director, Aarne Neeme, as ‘brilliant’ and composer Allan McFadden, as ‘a musical genius’. With a talented local cast and intimate venue, Frank Christie Frank Clarke! promises to be an imaginative and innovative adventure.
Sep 26-30, Italian Forum, 23 Norton St, Leichhardt, $20-25, 9020 6980, sydneyfringe.com.au
