WORDSPOKEN is a local tradition in the making.
The event series, which will return from a summer hiatus as part of the Castlemaine Fringe program, showcases local poets, musicians and storytellers in the shell of the old Melbourne tram at Lot19.
WORDSPOKEN draws on this thread, providing a space for experimental and experiential artistic expression, inviting audiences to feed their imaginations, hone their listening skills and reflect into the stories that all of us hold – whether spoken aloud or left unsaid.
The tram becomes a stage for the theatre of the everyday: the raw, the radical and emergent and – the sometimes – uncomfortable witnessing of each other’s stories as they play out in real time.
The events are produced by locals Sam Thomas and Claudia Lang, who initially crossed paths through the Mechanics Lane events program in 2023.
Thomas grew up in the UK, son to Britain’s first storytelling Laureate Taffy Thomas, from a very young age, was immersed in street theatre, circus workshops, folk festivals in the UK and abroad. Having experienced first-hand the way that live performance can bring communities together, Thomas’s vision for WORDSPOKEN is an ongoing practice that creates a timeless intimate live experience in an attempt to understand who we are in the face of all of our imperfections and contradictions.
Lang was drawn to the project out of a curiosity in modes of connection exempt from the modern filters that shield us from raw expression and honesty. Having journeyed through adolescence at the time when Facebook was beginning to install itself in social fabric, Lang witnessed early on the startling disparity between the details of life that are shared online and the full spectrum of the lives that we actually live. Lang has since spent much of her working life engaged in community development, seeking and building connections that happen face to face, unfiltered, and those that are grounded in place, which has included developing a youth program with Castlemaine’s backyard composting project, YIMBY Compost.
WORDSPOKEN’s Fringe shows will spotlight the dynamic trio of Patch (Patrick) Pheasant, Maggie Clare and Derry Doyle, young locals who bring heart, zest and a little cheek to each performance.
Doyle self-describes as a “fly on the wall that rummages for romance in the mundane and spins yarns with a fiercely Australian tongue”. He swears like a saint, is sensitive as a sailor, and never lets the truth get in the way of a good story.
Maggie Clare dances the borders between worlds, spooling out stories until they break and roll back to the beginning. Along the way, she’s been known to try on the guise of poet, carnie, clown, wisewoman, diva, but there’s delight in not knowing which persona she might drag from the dressing room next.
In contrast, Patch Pheasant offers a nervine tonic for the tram travellers, sharing spacious cello tunes and song straight from the heart. He draws inspiration from folk traditions, enjoying time travelling through old tunes and bringing them to life.
Pheasant and Thomas first connected during Pheasant’s childhood at the Port Fairy Folk Festival where Thomas performed regularly as part of live art performance company ‘The Chipolatas’, which Pheasant has fond memories of as a child. Through WORDSPOKEN, the two share the stage in this sweet unfolding of events.
No two of WORDSPOKEN shows at Castlemaine Fringe will be exactly the same, featuring surprise cameos from other local artists throughout the program. Tickets can be purchased through www.castlemainefringe.org.au/tickets/wordspoken
Patch Pheasant (pictured with cello) and Maggie Clare perform in the tram. Photo: Aaron Keith 
Derry Doyle performs in the tram in a previous edition of WORDSPOKEN. Photo: Aaron Keith
