While everyone in Perth is busily focused on the final preparations for the opening of The Sapphires, our sellout season for the Perth Festival, Artistic Director Kate Cherry is equally hard at work in Melbourne preparing for the first preview of a new World Premiere commissioned by Black Swan as part of the Rio Tinto Black Swan Commissions, called the The Swimming Club.  Kate is directing this latest work from well known Australian playwright Hannie Rayson, a co-production with Melbourne Theatre Company.  It will have its initial season in Melbourne before it comes to Perth, opening here in late March.  We wish Kate and her cast all the best for the Melbourne season opening on 4 February.

Hannie Rayson joined me in Port Macquarie last year to ‘pitch’ the production at a national conference of Australian venues and presenters for touring in 2011.  Based on the interest in Hannie’s past works, we hope to take The Swimming Club on a national tour in 2011.

I am keen to see Black Swan take up more opportunities for the best of our work to tour nationally.  The rest of Australia deserves to see the best of our WA creatives and actors.  I will be attending the biennial Australian Performing Arts Market in late February in Adelaide to talk with a range of presenters that are interested in Black Swan and our work.

Following its Perth premiere season, The Sapphires will tour to the Adelaide Festival and through regional Victoria and NSW before its Company B Belvoir season in June 2010.  I hope this will be the first of many Black Swan productions to tour Australia in future.