Australian Stage Legend Geraldine Turner Directs Tribute to Jacques Brel

Directed by Australian stage and screen legend Geraldine Turner AM, Riverside Theatres presents the powerful and bold musical revue, Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris, from 10th to 13th August 2017.

This production from Miranda Musical Society explores the sardonic, wise and intensely emotive songs of the influential Belgian singer-songwriter, Jacques Brel.

A riveting performer and prolific songwriter, Brel was an individualist whose music ranged from the rhapsodically romantic to the caustically political. Brel's fever-grade ballads about love's vagaries have been widely covered by artists from Judy Collins and Frank Sinatra to David Bowie.

Over half a century from when they were originally written, Brel's songs retain their edgy vibe in this show that The New York Times called "a potent mixture of romanticism and cynicism, world-weariness and jaunty whimsy."

Each song in the production tells a story and examines themes of love, war, being young and growing old...but never forgetting that life, with all its tragedies and complexities, is filled with humour.

Brel was part of the French-language art-song movement that reached peak international popularity in the 1950s and '60s led by revered performers such as Edith Piaf, Charles Aznavour and Yves Montand.

Performer, writer and director, Geraldine Turner's name is synonymous with Australian show business. She has received numerous Green Room Awards, Mo awards, including a Gold Mo for Performer of the Year, and an Order of Australia for services to the arts. Her decision to direct this production for Miranda Musical Society is her way of giving back to the industry, of sharing her skills, her expertise and experience with aspiring performers crafting their skills.

Starring: Anne Maree Fanning, Jennifer Parbery, Nicholas Ryan, Margaret Short, Andrew Symes and Tim Wotherspoon Director: Geraldine Turner Musical director: Mark Cranston Reid

What: Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris

When: 10th to 13th August, 2017

Times: 8pm on 10th-12th, 4pm on 12th and 3pm on 13th August
Location: Riverside Theatres - Corner Church and Market Streets, Parramatta

Tickets: Adult $42, Concession $37, 30 & Under $28

Transaction fees: phone $4.60, web $3.60 and counter $2.60. Discounts available for Riverside Theatres' Members.

Bookings: www.riversideparramatta.com.au or from the Box Office (02) 8839 3399