Adelaide to welcome new Fringe hub in 2021:
THE QUEENS
GWB Entertainment in association with Release Creative is proud to present – THE QUEENS: Fringe at its Finest. Adelaide’s newest Fringe destination will transform one of the city’s oldest and most spectacular buildings, Queen’s Theatre, into a West End Fringe hub.
THE QUEENS will offer Fringe-goers a curated program of first class music, cabaret and comedy from February 19 to March 21 in Australia’s oldest mainland theatre.
The team behind THE QUEENS is: Torben and Richelle Brookman of GWB Entertainment and Amelia Ryan and Zac Tyler (Release Creative). All have a history of producing and presenting events and productions in Australia and internationally.
Curated by Amelia and Zac, THE QUEENS will host more than 25 shows and 82 performances across the 2021 Fringe with 11 world premieres and 16 South Australian premieres. But the team say the defining feature of THE QUEENS’ inaugural program is the impressive depth of acclaimed performers in the full line-up, which will be announced later this month.
“With our combined history, experience and contacts, we are going to be putting on something pretty special that will appeal to those looking for a different Fringe experience, under one historic roof,” says Amelia, an award-winning cabaret performer of acclaimed shows such as A Storm in a D Cup, Lady Liberty and UNSUNG to name a few.
The socially distance-friendly venue will feature an inviting bar and lounge area that will host people pre and post shows, while the main performance area, The Chamber, will house 220 seats, including premium tables, theatre style seating and high table options. THE QUEENS is where Fringe-goers with a taste for the finer things in life will find their place amongst world-class artists in a sophisticated and vibrant venue.
GWB Entertainment Director, Richelle Brookman, says the historic Queen’s Theatre will star alongside the world-class line up of performers as a feature of THE QUEENS’ experience.
“We’re looking forward to showcasing the Queen’s Theatre itself as an experience alongside the shows that are on stage. We want to create a wonderful experience for both patrons and artists to ensure everyone’s return to live performance is a welcoming and festive one,” states Richelle.
“The Queen’s Theatre is mainland Australia’s oldest purpose built theatre and we are privileged to utilise this historic building to showcase Fringe at its finest – entertaining, irreverent and humorous and all presented with approachable sophistication. We can’t wait, it’s going to be a blast!” says Torben, who is a former Executive Producer of the Adelaide Cabaret Festival and Deputy Executive Director of the Adelaide Festival.
THE QUEENS will showcase acclaimed performers in a premium venue with first class production values – more than 50 local musicians and 17 local venue staff will help the headline acts bring the 25 shows to life – a major factor as to why so many talented artists have jumped at the opportunity to feature in THE QUEENS’ inaugural Fringe season.
“A lot of the artists we were talking to weren’t sure if they were doing Fringe next year but when they found out what we were planning in this venue, they were quickly onboard,” says Zac, who runs boutique production company Release Creative alongside his role of Executive Producer at GWB. “All of a sudden they felt supported in what is a strange time; they knew they had a place where they could do something a bit more theatrical and intimate because this is a space that demands and complements a crafted music, cabaret or comedy performance.”
Aside from the performances, THE QUEENS is a hub where people can meet before or after the shows thanks to the inviting bar & lounge foyer which will host a Cellar Door experience in the heart of the city for the Clare Valley region.
The team cannot wait to open the doors in February and host patrons in the venue enjoying some top shelf South Australian beverage and produce while seeing world-class shows.
THE QUEENS: Fringe at its Finest
February 19 to March 21
Corner of Playhouse Lane and Gilles Arcade, Adelaide
queenstheatre.com.au
@thequeensadelaide
TEAM QUEENS – BIOGRAPHIES
Amelia Ryan
Amelia Ryan is a multi-award winning Cabaret Artist, Writer, Presenter, Mentor and Mum. A musical theatre actress by trade (Victorian College of the Arts), she swapped ‘song & dance’ for ‘comedy & cabaret’, when she realised her ability to do a time-step (or ANY step) paled in comparison to her knack for cracking a quip.
Since co-winning the 2012 Your Theatrics International Cabaret Contest, her critically acclaimed shows have traversed the Australian cabaret circuit, as well as New York City, London, and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, playing to 5 star reviews and standing ovations. Her self-devised work includes A Storm In A D Cup, Lady Liberty, The Breast Is Yet To Come and Livvy & Pete: The Songs of Olivia Newton-John and Peter Allen, with Helpmann award winner Michael Griffiths.
In 2019 Amelia received the Adelaide Cabaret Festivals inaugural ‘Frank Ford Commission’ (selected by Artistic Director Julia Zemiro) and created UNSUNG – an homage to Australia’s female singers from the 1960s and 1970s. It’s a loud and proud celebration of Australia’s pioneering women of pop and rock, and is co-performed with Libby O’Donovan.
Amelia is a mindset and performance coach, and in 2020, launched The Cabaret Lab; a development space for performing artists in the craft of cabaret and self-devised work. She is extremely passionate about helping emerging artists harness the humour, heart and soul of cabaret.
Zac Tyler
Zac has extensive multi-disciplinary experience as an actor, producer and director across musical theatre, cabaret, and concert art forms.
In 2013, Zac joined the team at Adelaide Festival Centre until he completed his tenure in 2017 in the role of Producer – Adelaide Cabaret Festival and Commercial Ventures. Zac is also co-founder and Artistic Director of boutique production company Release Creative.
Directing credits for Adelaide Cabaret Festival include the Regional Roadshows (2014-2017), The Weill File (hosted by Robyn Archer), the Family Gala (2016 & 2017), 2017 Closing Gala – Songs of Love and Revolution and the 2018 Variety Gala Performance. For Release Creative they include Silver Rain: Illuminated Opera (White Night Melbourne & Geelong), Moving Too Fast, the 2016 & 2017 Made in Adelaide Showcases in Edinburgh for Arts South Australia. Zac’s recent highlights include producing and directing The Studio: 54 Reasons to Party with Adelaide Symphony Orchestra and Disco Wonderland with West Australian Symphony Orchestra and being appointed Creative Director for the inaugural Walk of Fame Gala held in Adelaide’s Festival Theatre in January 2018, which featured some of Australia’s most revered performing artists.
Zac currently serves as Executive Producer for GWB Entertainment and has worked on George Orwell’s 1984, the Australia, New Zealand and Germany tours of West Side Story and a series of concerts namely Swing on This, The Music of James Bond and Thirteen Ways to Look at Birds (ft. Paul Kelly) presented at a number of premier festival and venues Australia wide. He is also spearheading several shows currently in development.
GWB Entertainment
With offices in Adelaide and London, GWB Entertainment, one of the preeminent producers of first-class theatrical productions in the Asia Pacific, is an internationally recognised theatrical producer and presenter specialising in conceptualising, producing and managing first-class theatrical and concert productions.
Initially focused on the development and enhancement of the touring circuit for first-class productions in the burgeoning Asian market, the company expanded its operations to include producing and presenting a diverse range of live productions and events in markets around the world. Over the last two years, GWB has produced and presented over 15 productions, across 38 cities, in 11 countries with audiences in excess of 1 Million.
In Australia and New Zealand, GWB has produced Andrew Lloyd Webber’s School of Rock, West Side Story, George Orwell’s 1984, Ghost the Musical, Broadway star Kristin Chenoweth at the Sydney Opera House, The Rocky Horror Show, Swing on This, Thirteen Ways to Look at Birds and The Music of Queen – A Symphonic Rock Spectacular.
In London, The King and I at the London Palladium, Britney Spears The Cabaret at The Other Palace, The Women In White and Equus at London’s Trafalgar Studios.
In Asia, GWB has toured Matilda the Musical, School of Rock, The King and I, Disney’s High School Musical, West Side Story, Ghost The Musical, Avenue Q and Jesus Christ Superstar. GWB provides General Management for numerous first-class tours including Andrew Lloyd Webber’s CATS and The Phantom of The Opera.
GWB also manages the Queens Theatre in Adelaide and GWB Studios providing first class training to the next generation of South Australian performers.
gwbentertainment.com | @gwbenter
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