Hobart's History Comes Alive

How do you decide what sights and attractions to take in when you go to visit a new place? If you are at all like me you immediately hit the TripAdvisor button and find out what travellers have to say about a place. TripAdvisor, for those who don’t know, is a world travel site which carries recommendations from travellers about the places they have seen and stayed at. The thing about TripAdvisor is, it’s honest and can’t be influenced by business owners. Here, at “Louisa’s Walk”, we’re really proud to have been the number one rated thing to do in Hobart for the last couple of years. However, Samuel McLellan at Great Expeditions is snapping at our heels! Samuel has only been running his personalised tour company for just under a year but he is already number two on TripAdvisor.

Actually we don’t mind at all and we’ll invite him for a glass of champagne when he overtakes us! As any business owner knows, competition is great and, actually, Great Expeditions is not a competitor but works in with “Louisa’s Walk”. Samuel tailor makes tours to his clients tastes and one of the options he offers is a “Louisa’s Walk” then a tour up Mount Wellington – all beautifully lubricated with some lovely Tassie wines and foods – hmmm sounds more than okay to me! We have had the pleasure of taking Samuel and his clients a couple of times now on “Louisa’s Walk” and look forward to many more!

But what really interests me is what does it take to get a visitor to our lovely city to choose to experience something like “Louisa’s Walk”? Obviously, we take a lot of visitors who have convict ancestry – they’re a shoe- in, their interest already piqued but, others who have no interest in history? Presumably, one of the attractions that has helped to make the decision to visit Tasmania in the first place is our natural beauty and, just maybe, our history? Visitors from interstate often tell me how wonderful our old buildings are and how they have nothing like them where they come from. Tasmania has a rich history, everyone flocks down to Port Arthur but in fact, there is so much more right on Hobart’s doorstep.

What is it about “Louisa’s Walk” that so captivates people? I would hazard a guess that it is the magic of storytelling. Whether you are interested in history or not, everyone loves a good story! Right back when we gathered around our camp fires to tell tales of the hunt, to the much more sophisticated, movies and television of the present day – it’s all about a good story. “Louisa’s Walk” engages you, it makes you laugh, it makes you cry. These are emotions that stay with you. These are things you remember.

Chris and I are both trained actors, as I hope is more than obvious to those who come on “Louisa’s Walk” and hear the story of Louisa and the day-to-day trials of life in the Cascades Female Factory. Again and again we hear comments like “Oh! You really take us there” or “I had to fight back the tears, it’s all so real!”. These comments are music to our ears of course. I often preface the start of “Louisa’s Walk” by telling the audience that there is little left to this, now World Heritage listed site, but sandstone walls. “But don’t worry,” I say, “we will take you there with our dramatic skills. Let us paint the scene for you with our words”. It is true that it is partly our passion for what we do and our skills, that make “Louisa’s Walk” the success that it has become.
However, as actors, we are also available for other acting gigs and that has been very apparent in the last week. We were both cast as extras in the latest Willem Dafoe film “The Hunter”, parts of which are being shot here in Tasmania. So, last Monday night saw both of us providing background characters to a scene being shot in the cocktail bar of the Grand Chancellor hotel in Hobart. The film tells the tale of someone who is obsessed with finding the last Tasmanian Tiger or Thylacine (Willem Dafoe’s character of course). I have long held the view that, just as the New Zealand film industry seems to have carved a niche for dark,brooding films, Tasmania can do the same, finding its own, specific, genre. Our wonderful light, majestic and varied scenery and the swag of good talent both onscreen and behind the scenes, not to mention post production, should be recognised. A little island at the bottom end of the world? Why not? We are unique and talented! I hope “The Hunter” is a huge success for all concerned.

From time-to-time, we also are lucky enough to be cast for advertisements (I feature on several, currently showing on television at present). These, whilst not requiring a great deal of acting talent, are well paid and swell the coffers of our erratic income so, are very welcome! Last week Chris was cast in the latest RACT advertisement which entailed an afternoon’s and an evening’s filming. It was a huge cast with eight different locations and a dozen or so cast members. Chris plays the driving instructor and then cuts to the man whose house is burning down so, if you’ve been on “Louisa’s Walk”, you can see Chris in yet another character!

As if this wasn’t enough excitement for one week, Chris also had a call from a young film-maker/ writer/director with whom he had worked several years ago – Sean Byrne. Sean has just released his first feature length movie, “The Loved Ones”. Because Chris had helped him out with his early shorts, which helped to set him on the road to being a film-maker, Sean invited us to the premiere launch of the movie at Village Cinema, Glenorchy last Thursday. Chris had warned me Sean was into horror and that it may be pretty dark! I have to admit that, as a genre, it was not my bag BUT – what a talent! I have no doubt that “The Loved Ones” will quickly gather a cult following. This young man could well be Australia’s answer to the Coen Brothers in a few year’s time. The film had a sense of place and characterisation rarely seen in Australian films – indeed it has already won awards at prestigious Film Festivals and deservedly so. Check out Margaret and David’s review on the “Movie Show” this Wednesday. It would need to be a different genre but, if ever Sean needs an older woman to feature in an upcoming movie,he can contact me via this web site!

A while ago I posted a blog called “Louisa’s Nature Walk”. There were tales of a platypus (whom we’ve named “Monty”, he is a monotreme after all) and the dozen or so ducklings waddling around the Cascade Gardens to the delight of our audience. Not so pleasant were the plovers who had nested in Yard One performing dive bombs on me!

It’s time for an update. I have already told you that the plovers have gone, their eggs re-located by Parks and Wildlife but Monty has also decamped! Yesterday, we were unfolding the end of Louisa’s story at the stone seat memorial, where the three gleditsias commemorate the work of the National Council of Women Tasmania, when a man stopped and had a chat to Chris. He told him that Monty has now moved down stream and is now in the pool opposite the Female Factory. We haven’t seen him yet but we will. I have lived on this lovely island for over 35 years and in all that time, have only once seen a platypus in the wild – to see Monty on a regular basis is a thrill!

Sadly, the report on the ducklings is not so positive – only two days after seeing them -their numbers were down to only one and, that one, now gone. They have so many predators and ducks are perhaps not the best of mothers. Ah well – nature can be cruel. But let me tell you about the azaleas at the top of the Cascade Gardens, where we start Louisa’s Walk! Louisa’s story starts off at the very top of the Gardens and, just after I hand you over to Matt, I trot off down the hill ready to start our performance. Just now I am almost blinded by a technicolor haze of beautiful azaleas – so lovely I almost convince myself I am on some psychedelic drug but- I promise I’m not!

Today is Show Day down here in Hobart, a public holiday and the day when, traditionally, many people take their families to visit The Royal Hobart Show. Usually we locals joke about “show weather” because, again traditionally, it’s often blowing a gale or pouring with rain for Show Day. Today though, we were blessed with balmy, spring weather, a day when it felt good to be alive. Not that we went to the Show! I have to confess I have never been nor taken my children, I’m really hoping they haven’t grown up feeling too deprived! I am not a lover of crowds and, as we lived on a hobby farm when they were growing up, cuddling farm animals was no novelty for them. No, far from romping off to the Show, Louisa was strutting her stuff in glorious sunshine today with a lovely sized group of eight.

On the way home in the car I asked Chris if he had heard of that old Jewish story the one about the man who can’t bear all the noise in his house so he goes to ask the Rabbi for advice? Do you know it? The Rabbi tells him to import a flock of chickens. He returns the following week complaining that his household is even worse. The Rabbi nods sagely and tells him to import a goat. So it goes on, till there is a veritable menagerie living with the man and his family. He returns to the Rabbi virtually tearing out his hair, the noise is so unbearable! Week by week and one by one, the Rabbi tells him to reduce the animals in the household until (you guessed it) he has returned to the original size of his family. “Thank you Rabbi” the man says, “I now have peace again”! Good isn’t it?

Why am I relating this story? Louisa’s Walk has been a bit like this lately. If you read some of my latest blog posts you will read of the wind and the rain and the plovers. Sometimes it has just seemed too hard a way to earn a living. Today, though, perfect weather conditions and the plovers eggs have been re-located by Parks and Wildlife. It is such bliss to enter the Female Factory Yard One with no wheeling, diving, screeching birds (poor things only trying to protect their young). Yesterday, two council workers were operating two brush cutters around the memorial seat opposite the Female Factory, it’s where Louisa shows her quilt to her fellow “convicts”. The noise was deafening and I could hardly make myself heard.

Today all was quiet. Thank you Rabbi!

“Platypi” is the plural of platypus isn’t it – it sounds right? I posted a blog a few weeks ago called “Louisa’s Nature WalK” well, Louisa’s Walk has become even more bound up with natural things of late. At this time of year, when Spring has well and truly sprung, we always expect to see ducklings along the Hobart Rivulet, beside which a great deal of Louisa’s Walk takes place. Sadly, these fluffy little black and yellow balls don’t generally survive in any great number, falling prey to the forest ravens, cats and raptors that also inhabit the area.

The weather has been very challenging this week but we have managed to take out a few groups between the heavier days of rain. One such group was last Wednesday when General Practice Training Tasmania brought a group of 11 on Louisa’s Walk as a social outing for their team. They were a great bunch and we cracked some good jokes in the Crime Yard when Louisa asked their advice about whom she should tell about the abuse; “Don’t tell the doctor, doctors are terrible people” they quipped!

For the past ten days or so, we have had to compete with a pair of spur – wing plovers who have laid three eggs right in the centre of the Crime Yard upon a patch of grass (they did this a few years ago too with little success). As soon as we enter Yard One with our audience, they start up their warning cries and wheel and swoop on poor Louisa when she separates from the main group. I was wondering if they might think that I am a plover as I am dressed in black, grey and white but Chris thinks not! I have circled their nest with large stones so they don’t get trampled on and also notified the Ranger from Parks and Wildlife. These birds are a protected species here and it would be wonderful to see little chicks hatch but, in such a public place, I do wonder if they can possibly survive?

On our return journey, last Wednesday we hoped to see the platypus in the pool at the bottom of the rivulet (or to use its correct term “the flood mitigation device”). Chris and I have named him “Monty the Monotreme” and we have been privileged to see him several times in the past few weeks but, no luck on this particular day. However, no Monty but, a little further upstream, a gaggle of newly hatched ducklings with their Mum sheltering under the emerging leaves of a rhus plant. We completely lost our audience at this point. What is it they say about never performing with children or animals?

We only live a stone’s throw from Blackmans Bay Primary School – we hear them when they are out at playtime, so it was great to take their Grades 3/4 out on Louisa’s Walk last Friday. They had made a great effort to dress in the clothes of the time. This is something we encourage, where possible, as Louisa’s Walk is interactive, the children actually become the convicts and, being clothed appropriately helps them to feel part of the action. Most of the girls wore shawls, skirts and mob caps (shower caps make great mob caps!) and lots of the boys too, had caps, waistcoats and scarves. They looked great!

What a great bunch of enthusiastic students they were! Their teachers had done lots of preparatory work on the convict system so they were well up with the history of the times and this always helps to access Louisa’s story. Primary students are so different from secondary, as any teacher will tell you and this age a delight as they haven’t (quite) yet learned to be “cool”! We had eager volunteers to be part of the “Anchor Party” (the three students chosen to be in charge of weighing and dropping the anchor) many sail hoisters, bell ringers and washers (in the washing yard).

It was their questions afterwards though, that most impressed us. Nearly all students ask good questions after the Primary performance is over, down in Yard One. That’s the time when we come out of character, introduce ourselves properly and invite questions. Sometimes, these are slow to get going but, usually, Chris can encourage questions with a bit of prompting but in Blackmans Bay case the students needed no prompting. One was more of a reflection than a question and it was this, “The women would have been really surprised to know that one day they would be famous”. Hmm that is food for thought isn’t it?

Last Friday October1st, Chris and I were privileged to open the Arts Society Of Tasmania’s New Members exhibition at the Acanthe Gallery in Lenah Valley. We had been asked to perform this pleasant task by Roger Imms, a member of the Society and the recipient of the Luke Wagner Award ( at a previous exhibition) for his beautiful painting “Ocean Two – Weight and Weightless”. Roger’s painting was quite breathtaking, a large ( 91 x 122 cm) oil on canvas. It held a dynamism and a spirituality that was hard to name.
So, it was with some enthusiasm that we approached the task of opening this October exhibition as Sir John and Lady Franklin. I have described, in a previous post, how the little gallery was built by Lady Jane and it is a wonderful piece of architecture; a miniature Greek temple in the outer reaches of Hobart’s suburbs.

Chris, the writer of all our “Live History” productions, including the award winning convict drama “Louisa’s Walk” for which we have become quite famous, wrote an endearing piece which gave the audience a peek into Sir John and Lady Jane at home before attending the opening. We then swept round to the front of the Gallery where we were ushered in to the sound of trumpets and an announcement. Lady Jane then declared the Exhibition open.

We were presented with bottles of Pooley wines and a delightful bouquet assembled by one of the artists. We were so impressed by the evening – everyone that we met was so warm and friendly it made me wish I could paint or draw! I was told I could join as a social member though so that’s a possibility.

The event has been well covered in our local newspaper “The Kingborough Chronicle” with some great photographs of some of the people present. Well done all for a truly memorable and fun event.

Much has been written in the media recently, about the fall of tourist numbers in Tasmania. Here at Louisa’s Walk we have experienced the opposite , we are getting busier and busier! There has also been much discussion from small tourism operators, about the emphasis on the big, glitzy tourism attractions. The detractors of Tourism Tasmania are saying that it is only the big end of town that get any coverage at all. Whilst I can’t disagree with this entirely, we must remember that the media has its own agenda and what we see in print is not necessarily, the way things are; it’s their spin!

I hope it’s apparent, to those of you who have experienced Louisa’s Walk, that we are passionate about our lovely island and Tasmanian history! When we see Tasmania trying to emulate the mainland or big city life it saddens us. Surely, what we have to offer here is the antithesis of big city life. So many of Louisa’s Walk audience members tell us that they have fallen in love with our life style, with our quaint buildings with our history. Why oh why would we ever allow ugly, urban and suburban development to match the mainland? Why do we allow our beautiful heritage buildings to be swallowed up by “progress”? Why must “modern” mean ugly?

So many questions, so few answers! Martin Luther King said he had a dream. I too have a dream, of an island so proud of its heritage, its convict history its beauty and its uniqueness that it shuns the big end of town. A place that showcases its food, wines, history, beauty, craftsmen, artists and sustainable way of life that it can thumb its nose at the multi – national food outlets and cheap chains. I am told there is a small town, on the east coast of England, that has not allowed these money-hungry, faceless businesses to take over their High Street; the small business and individual shops thrive and survive! Oh, that Tasmania could have similar courage!

I have always said that doing theatre out in the open can be distracting and no more so than today! If you read one of my previous posts “Louisa’s Nature Walk” you will read about the platypus that appeared at the bottom of the Cascade Gardens. A few days later, after the initial sighting, it re-appeared, just as we were approaching the pool where we had spotted him before. “Louisa” started telling the audience to keep quiet because we might see it. As if on cue, one of the audience said, “There it is!” and, sure enough, we all got a quick glimpse of it diving back to safety. The audience were most impressed and wondered if it was a toy we had on a string but, no such artful tricks are necessary – it’s the real thing!

Today, I again saw the platypus when I was leading the audience down onto “The Hulk” (these were the ex battle ships which housed the convicts awaiting transportation on the River Thames). I spotted the, by now, familiar ripples and saw him dive, it was so hard to keep my mind on my lines, I wanted to turn the audience around and say “There’s a platypus!”. However, as at this point of Louisa’s Walk, we are supposed to be on an abandoned war ship on the River Thames in London, I resisted. There is such a thing as the suspension of disbelief!

Today, on the return walk, back up to the top of the Cascades, when we are firmly in Van Diemens Land and Louisa is with her William, it was appropriate to get excited and tell the audience that, if they were very fortunate, we might see a platypus. Well, were we in for a treat; we waited quietly, eyes alert for telltale ripples when, sure enough, he surfaced and really put on a show for us. One of our audience, Duncan, had a very professional camera and got some wonderful shots with a zoom lens. Duncan has promised to send me the photos so I can post them on this blog. It was hard to tear ourselves away from this natural performance a platypus is such an elusive creature. I have lived in Tasmania for over 35 years and have only ever seen one once.

We were wondering if he is getting used to people? Several years ago we worked as Island Managers on the lovely Greek island of Ikaria. Part of our duties, was to take clients for a guided walk around one of the beautiful canyons at the bottom of which flowed a stream. This stream was home to small terrapins. Both Chris and I remember, at the beginning of the season, that these creatures were very shy but, by the end they were boldly approaching us for the food we would throw to them. Could it be this platypus is getting used to human contact?

A quick look at the pages offered on this web site, will tell you that we do more than bring the Female Convict story to life. Though Louisa’s Walk is the main stay and flagship of our business, Live History, and the school’s version becoming very popular amongst teachers who want to make history live for their students, we offer more. Visit Live History Productions and you will see that we can be commissioned to research, script and perform any topic of historical interest at any venue. Yes, of course we dream of being flown to an exotic tropical island to bring its history to life but – this is the real world! To date we have a half-dozen or so plays ranging from five minutes to half-an-hour which have all been written by Chris and which we have performed at locations from Oatlands to Dodges Ferry. Sometimes, as was the case with Ticklebelly Tales or Wild Oatsland, we have employed other actors to swell the cast but, usually it’s just us.

Our latest commission is to open the, Arts Society of Tasmania Exhibition at the delightful Ancanthe Gallery in Lenah Valley, Hobart, on 1st October. This Exhibition is, specifically, to display the works of new members. The Ancanthe Gallery was built by Lady Jane Franklin in 1842 its name means “blooming valley”. She built it as a museum and it is shaped like a little Greek temple. This was Lady Jane’s attempt to inject some spirit into what she termed “the cultural indifference of Van Diemens Land”. Since her departure in 1843, the building has had various uses until being handed over to the Hobart City Council and it is now the official home of the Arts Society of Tasmania – which would, I think, meet with Lady Jane’s approval.

Appropriately enough, Chris and I have been asked to open the October Exhibition as Sir John and Lady Jane; Chris has written a charming little skit so we can carry out our duties in character. Most of the characters I play in our other plays (and certainly as Louisa) are poor or convict women so, this time, I had to hire a costume. Fancy Francis in South Hobart kitted me out well and were also able to supply Chris with a morning coat that fitted. We will more than look the part on the 1st! For photos taken at the publicity shoot please visit our Live History Productions page!