'Exile – Songs & Tales Of Irish Australia' presents a tapestry of Irish songs, poetry and visuals exploring Irish-Australian history and the Australian identity.
Through spoken and sung word, 'Exile' spans the ancient Celtic ‘Golden Age’ of Ireland through the many periods of Irish oppression including: invasion, the Tudors, Cromwell and, after the famous Potato Famine – An Gorta Mor – through from early settled Australia to the modern day.
Artistic Director and creator of the show, Shane Howard is known for his work with band Goanna and their classic ‘Solid Rock’ (#19 in scenestr’s Top 100 Best Aussie Songs Of All Time). Shane explains how song is the key to covering such a vast expanse of history in only 90 minutes. “Song is condensed story. It is distilled essence of story. Songs cover a lot of ground in a short space of time. You can really draw an audience into the story you are telling very succinctly and powerfully with music.”
Paul Kelly 'Exile' features a stellar line-up of Australian and Irish talent hand-picked by Shane including: Paul Kelly, Declan O’Rourke, Pauline Scanlon, John Spillane, Sean Tyrrell, and Lynelle Moran. Musical Director for the show is Ewen Baker who Shane says “can play just about any instrument. He’s a great fiddle player, mandolin player, guitar player and keyboard.” While some of the names may not be very well known in Australia, Shane believes that “after the event, I’m sure they will be!”
Shane is of Irish heritage, and although not thinking much of it at the time, grew up in a small country town with one of the densest concentrations of Irish settlement in Australia – “this kind of rural Irish ghetto”. He also lays claim to some remarkable Irish ancestry. “My auntie used to say ‘oh yes, your great grandfather was arrested at the Eureka Stockade and he had a hand in designing the Eureka flag.’ That was an old story and we didn’t pay much attention to it when we were growing up.
“It wasn’t until 1996 when I was playing at a Eureka function at the Old Melbourne Jail where the keeper of the public records presented me with a copy of my great grandfather’s arrest papers from the Eureka Stockade that oral history became documented history. It taught me to respect oral history in new way.”
Apart from a desire to continue the tradition of oral history, Shane’s inspiration for 'Exile' is deeply personal. “I was in the desert – this is after Solid Rock and Goanna – and I was talking to an old Aboriginal man. I felt very sorry at that time for Aboriginal people, particularly from my part of the world, who, through the process of colonisation, had lost their language, their culture, their dance, their stories and I was feeling a sadness for that loss. And this old fella said to me ‘where are you from?’ And I said, ‘south west Victoria’ and he said, ‘yeah, but where are your people from?’ And I said, ‘well predominantly Ireland.’ He said, ‘so, what’s your language, what’s your lingo, what’s your song, what’s your dance?’ And I realised in that moment that I had lost my culture as well. And he called me on it.
Leah Flanagan “It started me on a much deeper journey to really have a proper understanding of who I am, and where I had come from. And that’s been an ongoing journey for the last 25 years that’s lead to this show.”
The impact of Irish history on contemporary Australian culture is profound with Australian figures like the archetypal bush settler, Eureka Stockade rebel, mythic Ned Kelly and modern-era Paul Keating all claiming Irish background. There are also important lessons to be gleaned from the Irish story for perhaps the biggest issue facing modern Australia, as Shane explains. “It’s an interesting story in terms of colonialism with parallels to our own Australian story, with our own Indigenous people. And the same kind of process of healing and recognition and reconciliation that we have to deal with here.
“In any of the Anglo-Saxon countries, it takes about 600 years before your family is considered local, so we’ve a long way to go in this country before we can truly claim a sense of belonging. We have to build a tradition here because it doesn't exist. Yet. But we’re making it. We have to gather from the past those songs, those stories of our national narrative that are important to us.
“This show is about looking back over our shoulder and knowing where we came from. If you understand who you are and where you come from, you’re much more likely to value other people’s culture and who they are and where they’ve come from.”
Pauline ScanlonIt is clear that Shane is greatly passionate about 'Exile' for more than just its face value. However, he leaves us with this simple summary: “Even if you know nothing or care nothing for Irish history, I would think anyone who is Australian can’t help but be moved by the power of the story, the lessons of history and the power and beauty of the music. I think it will surprise people. It may surprise you to find out what you didn’t know.”
Written by Henry Rodriguez
Exile – Songs & Tales Of Irish Australia Tour Dates
Sat 20 February – Melbourne Arts CentreSun 21 February – Adelaide Festival Centre
Mon 29 February – Queensland Performing Arts Centre (Brisbane)
There will also be an evening with excerpts from the show at Factory Theatre in Marrickville 24 February.
