Castlemaine musician, storyteller and now OAM, Jan ‘Yarn’ Wositzky will celebrate five decades of music and yarns with a special 50th anniversary performance, Thank You For The Welcome, at Castlemaine’s historic Theatre Royal this Sunday.
The performance, proudly presented by Yarn Productions and Steampacket, will gather a half-century of songs and stories into one incredible heartfelt show.
Beginning in 1971 as a founder of the legendary Bushwackers Band, Wositzky has gone on to produce acclaimed theatre shows such as The Go-Between: William Murrungurk Buckley; best-selling books with Wardaman elder Yidumduma Bill Harney and Phar Lap’s strapper, Tommy Woodcock; numerous history features for Radio National; award-winning television documentaries with Yanyuwa and Garrwa people of Borroloola; goldfields CDs and audio tours, and lots more.
Thank You for The Welcome is Wositzky’s song to honour Australia’s Indigenous people – a theme that returns throughout the show.
Wositzky says the performance will be packed full of all his favourite stuff.
“There are songs and stories I believe are worth remembering into our future,” he says.
Wositzky will be joined by Jack Norton on guitar and bouzouki; multi-instrumentalist Wendy Rowlands on piano, sarangi, accordion and violin; Ian White on banjo and a number of other special guests.
“Jack brings a world of musicality to my Australian sensibility,” Wositzky says.
“A musicologist as well as a musician, Jack plays across various musical genres, from rock, ‘Early’ music, folk to classical.
“In the 1980s he travelled the Middle East and Europe, immersing himself in the music and cultures of the Middle East and Central Asia.
“In ‘Thank You For The Welcome’, Jack brings all these influences to bear, mesmerising audiences with his superb playing.”
Wendy Rowlands is an eclectic musician with a background ranging from playing in orchestras such as the Australian Pops Orchestra and running her own community orchestra – The Corker Orchestra, playing violin in the Brazilian Choro band ‘Pipoca’, improvisation with the Melbourne Playback Theatre, touring with Aria Award winning Greek band ‘The Habibis’ and much more in folk, jazz and community projects.
“In Thank You For The Welcome, Wendy brings all the joy of her lifetime in music, playing piano, sarangi, accordion and violin,” Wositzky says.
The talented troupe gathered at the historic theatre last week for a full rehearsal of the show and can’t wait to finally share it with an audience after multiple postponements due to COVID.
Tickets for the afternoon performance are $35 and can be snapped up at www.theatreroyalcastlemaine.com.au
