Meet the sweetly nutty Gingham Family. There's dear Mrs G who loves to sing everything she sees, while quick little Miss G, her light-footed helper, rollicks to the music that Clever DJ G samples.
They are very concerned for all the lost toys they are finding. To care for their newfound toy friends they have built a colourful home and little wooden beds.
Fluff is a delightfully imaginative performance with a cheeky mix of physical comedy, multi-media, song and music, juxtaposing new technology with handmade toys. A funny story for children equally enjoyed by adults!
The Gingham family would love you to stay after the show for a meet and greet.
"One of the most imaginative shows for the young you will find. Highly sophisticated and great fun... the children - and the adults - loved it!" The Advertiser
"simply enchanting... there is some sly wit for the parents and lewder humour for the young (or vice versa.) The pacing is deft and Johnston's vocal feats a marvel. By the end the children's participation is guaranteed, and they stream from the theatre with radiant faces". Sydney Morning Herald
The show will be followed by an opportunity for children to meet the artists and the toys.
Fluff by Christine Johnston
With Lisa O'Neill and Peter Nelson
CHRISTINE JOHNSTON - creator/singer/performer
Christine Johnston is a Brisbane based performing artist/vocalist/writer/musician who has created a diverse range of works for events, festivals, art galleries, theatre, film and cabaret around Australia, New Zealand and Europe. A childhood of bush walking and sitting in the chook-pen, meant developing a keen appreciation for her feathered friends' varied voices. This ultimately led to a performance career beginning with the inclusion of a gift for mimicking birds. As much known for her singing and experimental use of voice as she is for her dramatic visual style and particular bent on humour, Christine began to combine music and performance with her visual arts background when creating works in and around the Brisbane arts and music scene from the late 1980s. Her early work with THE HIBISCUS SISTERS and band GEZABEL DINOSAUR led to regular appearances in the popular Brisbane cabaret series WOMEN IN VOICE, where she first began her regular collaborations with costume designer Selene Cochrane and developed her bird-calling character MADAME LARK which has toured around Australia and New Zealand since. Christine began playing the musical-saw and started her creative work with dancer/actor Lisa O'Neill and musician Peter Nelson, beginning with her highly acclaimed show DECENT SPINSTER, (which won a Matilda Commendation Award in 2002) touring to QPAC, Sydney Opera House, Brisbane Powerhouse and Adelaide Cabaret Festival between 2000 and 2003. Christine's creative ventures with Lisa also include ALL TOMORROW'S PARTIES 1 AND 2 and PIANISSIMO - commissioned by QPAC in 2003 and touring to the Sydney Opera House in 2004. They collaborated again with Peter Nelson when Christine created her first children's production FLUFF for the 2002 Out of the Box Festival of Early Childhood. FLUFF is continuing to tour to major venues and Festivals throughout Australia and New Zealand. Her show WARM AND FUZZY was part of Out of the Box Festival 2004 and followed FLUFF to the Sydney Opera House in 2005. Her other children's work included MYRTLE BY THE WATER commissioned by the Queensland Art Gallery as part of Kids APT. With Annie Lee, Christine is co-creator/writer of the multi-award-winning comedic trio THE KRANSKY SISTERS, where Christine plays Eve Kransky. THE KRANSKY SISTERS continue their national and international touring, including regular television appearances. Their Awards include Sydney Theatre Award 2008, Herald Angel Award for Excellence (Edinburgh) 2006, Australian Mo Award 2005, and The Age Critics Award, Best Newcomers Award, and Green Room Award for Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2004. Christine is currently developing a new work with Lisa O'Neill, Peter Nelson, visual artist Ahmarnya Price and costume designer Selene Cochrane. The project is called RRAMP and the work in progress showing was well received as part of World Theatre Festival 2011 Scratch Series, at the Brisbane Powerhouse.
LISA O'NEILL - choreographer/ dancer/ performer
Lisa O'Neill is a performer, choreographer, performance director and teacher working extensively across forms in dance, theatre, contemporary performance and new-media. She has developed a broad and comprehensive body of work informed by her diverse arts practice. Lisa has received numerous performance commissions, touring her solo and collaborative works nationally and internationally to festivals in England, Greece, Austria, Scotland, Japan, China and New Zealand. Lisa also worked and toured as an actor with FRANK THEATRE from 1995 -- 2007. Highlights include performances at festivals in Japan, Czech Republic, Croatia and Turkey. Lisa is co-coordinator and director of the Advanced Diploma of Arts (Acting) course at Southbank Institute of Technology, having taught at the Institute since 2001. She is a founding and core member of the new media company, TRANSMUTE COLLECTIVE which has presented interactive art installations in galleries across Australia, Europe, Asia and the United States of America and is co-director of THE BRIDES OF FRANK performance group and business enterprise. Her tour-ready performance works include acclaimed solo dance pieces, SWEET YETI, FUGU SAN and PIANISSIMO, a dance/musical theatre piece co-created with Christine Johnston. Most recent productions include the solo dance/theatre work THE PIPE MANAGER; and theatre work, The PINEAPPLE QUEEN. Lisa has also published an electronic GRAPHIC NOVEL of The Pipe Manager through Playlab Press.
PETER NELSON - composer/ musician/ performer
Peter Nelson has been involved in live performance and production within the Brisbane music industry for nearly 20 years. As a vocalist and trumpet player Peter was a member of TAXI, a popular Funk/Rock/Punk Quintet, while incorporating turntables keyboard and sampling with an electro funk act THE VISITORS. Both bands were local favourites receiving JJJ airplay and were regulars at Woodford Folk Festival, Livid, Big Day Out and The Valley Fiesta. Peter was also a member of T SQUARED, a studio project, who were runners up in Triple j Unearthed. They were featured on a Sony compilation CD and created a track remix for Katie Noonan's trio ELIXIR. Peter began musically collaborating on a variety of theatrical and film projects such as writing the musical score for LIVES AND LOVES performed at the Brisbane Powerhouse and for BOREDOM PATROL a short movie screened at the Dendy Cinemas. He has also collaborated on the sound design for art installation piece K:\012044 in the QLD Museum. As part of the electronic duo TWEAKS AND BEATS Peter co-remixed CRY for Brisbane band GEORGE. In 2000 Peter began work with Christine Johnston, as musician/performer creating the music score with Owen Newcomb and Trent Arkley-smith, for her highly acclaimed show DECENT SPINSTER, which was a feature at the Sydney Opera House, Brisbane Powerhouse, Adelaide Cabaret Festival, and Queensland Performing Arts Centre. A creative partnership was sparked between Christine Johnston, Lisa O'Neill and Peter, when they joined to collaborate on Christine's first children's production called FLUFF. Since it's commission in 2002 by the Out Of The Box Festival at QPAC, FLUFF has continued to tour nationally and internationally to high acclaim. They are continuing their collaboration on a new project called RRAMP, recently featured as a 'work in development' as part of The World Theatre Festival 2011's Scratch Series at the Brisbane Powerhouse. Peter is currently the sound designer for Kite Arts Education YONDER program, and runs an assisted music program for Queensland Cerebral Palsy League, fusing modified controllers with live and electronic music.
Meet just a few of the toy stars!
Disco Frog
This green stretch-fabric toy is most happy when leaping! With a glint in his eye, the excitable handmade frog imagined jumping the night away under a fabulous disco ball, forgetting that he was in fact jumping underneath a circulating ceiling fan... oops... A jump too high and Disco Frog is flung further than he had anticipated! It was the Gingham Family who found the green tangled frog.
Scary Cheeks
Lovingly knitted by Grandma, Scary-Cheeks was a gift to Jack, who loved to do burn-outs on the footpath with his trike. Scary-Cheeks was Jack's constant pillion as they grew up. From the Dragster, to the BMX and finally the roaring Harley Davidson. Cheeks' daredevil pillion ways lead to the unfortunate day when Jack's Harley took off too fast, sending Scary-Cheeks to the gravel... knitted face and all. Thankfully the Gingham's were passing at the time.
Fluff
Fluff is by far the tiniest of all the toys. Accidentally dropped by little Eli while he ate a tasty cookie. How could so many crumbs fall to the carpet? And how could tiny Fluff be mistaken for one of those messy crumbs when mother's vacuum cleaner was powered up? Just as well it was little Miss G from the caring Gingham Family who emptied the vacuum cleaner bag that day!