presents
between heaven
and her
May 6 - 17, 2015
La Mama Theatre
Written by Dodo Gombár
Translated from Slovak by Danica Haláková
Directed by Lech Mackiewicz
Performed by Majid Shokor, Katharine Innes and Reece Vella
Journalist (voice only): Ubaldino Mantelli
Music performed live by Brighid Mantelli
Designed by Lara Week
Lighting design by Shane Grant
Sound by Max Schollar-Root
Images byJustyn Koh
An Auto Da Fe Theatre Company Production
DIRECTOR’S NOTE by Lech Mackiewicz
BETWEEN HEAVEN AND HER is a play about Love. About relationship. About Man and Woman.
It is a very universal, poetic and yet a very brutal piece of writing. Very direct. And incredibly rich
stylistically within it’s simple form. Pure pleasure to work on. It feels almost designed/written
especially for the intimate La Mama space. So there is no coincidence that the Australian premiere
of Between Heaven and Her takes place here in Melbourne’s most famous little theatre.
I tend to think that “I fell in love” with Dodo Gombar’s play Between Heaven and Her. Yes, I believe
that this is the most appropriate way to say it. I hope you feel the same way after seeing our
production of it.
Enjoy!
Dodo Gombár: Playwright
Dodo Gombár is a Slovak theater director and playwright. He studied directing at the Faculty of
Performing Arts in Bratislava. Since 2000, he has worked as a freelance director in many European
theaters, mostly Czech and Slovak. Dodo has staged over 60 plays including Faust, Three Sisters,
Master and Margarita, Fiddler on the Roof, Lemonade Joe, and Cabaret or Outlaw Ballad. Since
2010 he has been the artistic director of the Švandovo Theatre Company in Prague. His play
Between Heaven And Her premiered in 2012 in Budapest (Hungary), where Dodo directed it for the
Thalia Theatre Company.
Lech Mackiewicz: Director
Lech is a Polish actor, director, and playwright. Lech is a graduate of the National Academy of
Theatrical Arts (PWST) in Cracow, and the University of Technology, Sydney. He formed Auto Da
Fe Theatre Company in Sydney in 1987. He received the NSW Performing Arts Scholarship in
1991; assisted Neil Armfield on the production of Diary of A Madman with Geoffrey Rush at Belvoir
St Theatre; and collaborated with Tadashi Suzuki’s SCOT (Japan). Cate Blanchett’s first theatre
production out of NIDA was Kafka Dances at the Stables Theatre, where Lech starred as Franz
Kafka and Cate played his fiancée, Felice Bauer. Most recently Lech directed Tales of a City by the
Sea for La Mama Courthouse, and his Australian play Ditto. A Story, in Poland. Lech’s plays have
been published and performed in Australia, Poland and Japan.
Majid Shokor: Technician
Majid has been acting for over 30 years. He has won many awards in his home country of Iraq, where
he was a member of the Iraqi National Theatre Company and the Iraqi Theatre Artists Syndicate.
Since arriving in Australia in September 2001, Majid has twice been nominated for a Green Room
Best Actor Award. His theatre credits include The Cool Room for Belvoir St Theatre, and In Our
Name, presented by Company B. His screen credits include a guest role in City Homicide and an
actor and cultural consultant in the feature film Lucky Miles. Majid was last seen at La Mama in the
sold-out season of Tales of A City By The Sea. He holds a MA in Community Cultural Development
from VCA / Melbourne University.
Katharine Innes: Woman
Katharine is a Melbourne based actress, whose film work has screened in festivals around the
world, including A Single Guy (Daniel Johnson Films) Detroit International Film Festival, Love’s End
(Dir. Rob Mond) LA Comedy Festival, and The Appointment (M. Bardolia) New York International
Film Festival. Other screen highlights include feature films Crime & Punishment (January Films),
and The Subjects (Instinct Entertainment). Katharine has an extensive body of work in theatre
including two seasons with the Australian Shakespeare Company in Lady Chatterley’s Lover, and
Jazz Angel at The Athaneum. Katharine will soon be appearing in The Subtle Art of Flirting at The
Butterfly Club.
Reece Vella: Man
Reece graduated from The Actors College of Theatre and TV in Sydney in 2010. He has been acting
professionally for the past five years, working with the likes of Lech Mackiewicz, Lex Marinos and
Mario Philip Azzopardi. With a passion for new work, some of his latest endeavors include: the
world premier of Il- Kappillan ta’ Malta in Malta, Everyman and the Pole Dancers at Metanoia
Theatre, and the sellout Tales of a City by the Sea at La Mama Courthouse. Reece is delighted to
be performing at La Mama since he romantically holds this place close to his heart as an institution
of unquantifiable artistic and historical Australian value.
Brighid Mantelli: Musician
Brighid holds a Bachelor with Honours and Masters performance degrees from Melbourne
University and also spent time studying in Austria and England. She has diverse performance
experience—from touring Europe with Geminiani Orchestra to performing as a soloist in Mexico
City. Her first experience of improvising was in front of a camera for SBS’s Red Light in Full Flight.
Brighid loves to collaborate. In 2012 she composed original music for The Elephant Man, directed
by Libby Tanner and last year worked with visual artist Danielle McCarthy to compose and perform
for her exhibition Entanglement at FortyFive Downstairs.
Lara Week: Set and Costume Designer
Lara is a producer and designer for performance. In 2013, Lara completed her PG Dip in
Performance Creation (Design) at the Victorian College of the Arts. Her design credits include:
Tales of a City by the Sea (La Mama Courthouse), The Conference of the Birds (Centre for Cultural
Partnerships), A Feat Incomplete (Old 505 Theatre) and Tzlilei Kesem (Israeli Opera). Since 2011,
she has been associate producer for Tribal Soul Arts, producing decolonial arts programs and
performances in Zimbabwe, Mozambique, the Netherlands, UK, and Australia. She is dedicated to
creating spaces where people with different skills and perspectives can share ideas and produce
work together.
Shane Grant: Lighting Designer
Shane has been Audio Visual Technician for St Kevin’s College for the past nine years. Prior to that
he was Production Manager with Strange Fruit for six years and Technical Manager at Gasworks
Theatre for four years. Shane is an accomplished lighting designer having worked extensively
with companies like Ranters Theatre, The Torch Project, NYID and many others. Shane has a BA
Dramatic Arts (Production) VCA from 1994. Shane is currently a company director of Metanoia
Theatre and the technical manager of the Mechanics Institute theatre in Brunswick.
Max Schollar-Root: Sound Designer
From his roots in The Australian Theatre for Young People and the NSW Performing Arts Unit State
Drama Ensemble, Max found his passion in musical performance and composition while studying
at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. He works as a band leader with his group Ungus Ungus
Ungus, a multi-modal performance project combining live music, technology, and dance, and is
presenting this work at festivals nationally. A registered Music Therapist, he currently runs early
childhood music programs. He provided live sound tech and mixing for the sold-out season of
Tales of a City by the Sea in 2014.
Sarah Jane Robertson: Stage Manager
Sarah Jane Robertson is a recent graduate of the QUT Technical Production course where she
majored in Stage Management. This is Sarah Jane’s first production since moving to Melbourne
and she would like to thank all the cast and crew for being so welcoming and for making her first
show in Melbourne a very positive experience. Sarah Jane’s previous stage management roles
include; Assistant Stage Manager Beauty and the Beast 2011, Production Stage Manager Into the
Woods 2012, Stage Manager FLOODS A Travelling QLD Opera 2013 and Production Stage
Manager ActingWorks QUT Acting 2014.
Thank you to
Sonya and James and the White House
Justyn Koh
Luigi and Rita Sammut
Robert
Mr Long
Nicholas
Mila
Darren Vizer
Little Red Riding Hood
Alice from Wonderland
Three Little Pigs
Office Phone: (03) 9347 6948 | Office Hours: Mon – Fri | 10:30am – 5:30pm
Level 1, 205 Faraday Street, Carlton VIC 3053
www.lamama.com.au | [email protected] | www.facebook.com/lamama.theatre
Our sincerest thanks to the many volunteers who generously give their time in support of La Mama.
La Mama’s Committee of Management, staff and its wider theatrical community acknowledge
that our theatre is on traditional Wurundjeri land.
The La Mama community acknowledges the considerable support it has received in the past
decade from Jeannie Pratt and The Pratt Foundation.
La Mama is financially assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council – its
arts funding and advisory body, the Victorian Government through Arts Victoria - Department of
Premier and Cabinet, and the City of Melbourne through the Arts and Culture triennial funding
program.