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BANJO – 2023 NSW TOUR

A beautiful amalgam of the spoken word of A.B ‘Banjo’ Paterson’s famous verse, the music of COLDPLAY and stunning contemporary dance.

BOOK TICKETS

CENTRAL COAST, April 27th - Arthouse, Wyong

“I highly recommend this incredibly moving experience. It is breathtakingly good.” – Hon. Ben Franklin, NSW Minister for the Arts

The entire performance is poetry. – Joanna Silver

“World class, the fusion of contemporary dance, Australian iconic poetry and modern music is a truly unique experience” – Dale Carr

 

 

BANJO brilliantly intertwines the life events of Banjo Paterson through beautiful new arrangements of COLDPLAY’s greatest hits, contemporary dance and his very own verse.

“WORLD CLASS. THE FUSION OF CONTEMPORARY DANCE, AUSTRALIAN ICONIC POETRY AND MODERN MUSIC IS A TRULY UNIQUE EXPERIENCE.” – Dale Carr

Paterson’s beautiful verse – Clancy of the Overflow, As Long As Your Eyes Are Blue, Waltzing Matilda & The Man From Snowy River will blend with Clocks, Yellow, Fix You, Paradise, Viva La Vida and more.

Proudly built and shared first on Biripai Country in 2018.

CAST

Noah Mullins (FRONT)

At just 12-years-old, Noah performed alongside Todd McKenney in Songs and Stories of Peter Allen at the State Theatre in the role of Young Peter. Noah has had a passion for Musical Theatre since a very young age and has performed in more than 15 musical productions. Noah’s early theatre credits include the role of Munkustrap in CATS with Packemin Productions, Gavroche in Les Misérables with A.C.T San Diego and Evan Goldman in 13 the Musical with Birdie Productions. Other credits include lead Singer at Luna Park and NXTGEN member in Machismo an all-male dance show. Noah has toured all around the world and performed in Paris, San Diego, LA, and New York City.

In 2019 Noah made his professional debut in the Opera Australia/GWB world tour of West Side Story in the lead role of Riff. The production played at the Sydney Opera House as well as touring Australia, New Zealand and Germany. In 2020 Noah performed his first Cabaret show, a collection of songs and stories of his life as an expat kid living in Paris and San Diego and his love of theatre, the show debuted at Claire’s Kitchen on Oxford Street, Darlinghurst. He also achieved the role of Cy/ Jamie Understudy in the West End Award Winning, AUS/NZ Tour of Everybody’s Talking About Jamie! 2020/2021; which was sadly cancelled due to lockdown.

Noah was thrilled to return to the stage in 2021, reprising his role in West Side Story and to then be cast in the original Australian cast of Alanis Morrisette’s Jagged Little Pill (GWB Entertainment) which toured nationally throughout 2022. Most recently Noah was seen as Jean-Michel in La Cage Aux Folles (Showtune Productions). 

Mat Brooker (GUITAR)

Mat is a performing musician, producer and composer based in Port Macquarie. As a solo performer he has explored flamenco and world music on guitar, which led to him winning “Australian National Busking Championships” in 2016.

Mat has recorded three albums and performed at numerous music and arts festivals. Collaborations include live improvisation and response performances with sand artist John Thiering, touring as a guitarist for Phil Jamieson (Grinspoon), and studio engineering/session work for other artists.

Mat’s creative collaborations with Got Ya Back Productions have resulted in well received theatrical shows including Banjo (a contemporary dance mash-up of Banjo Patterson’s poetry with Coldplay’s music), Carnival of the Animals (a reworking of Camille Saint-Saens classical music) and The Christmas Bell (a film to celebrate the diverse talent and natural surrounds of the Port Macquarie-Hastings area).

For the past three years Mat has been the accompanist for Port Macquarie’s “School of Hard Knocks” choir, an all abilities group with a focus on inclusion and originality. Mat is excited to continue his creative performing, composing and collaborating in the future.

Steph Maddren (BACK RIGHT)

Stephanie Maddren is the Director of regionally based production company, Got Ya Back Productions. She holds a Bachelor of Arts (Dance) from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) and has since kept a very constant career in that and more.
She spent 5 busy years in Sydney and Melbourne as a commercial dancer, choreographer, model and teacher. Her work as a dancer took her to stages all around Australia from The Sydney Opera House to the Quarry Amphitheatre in Perth. She has danced in Film and TV including Baz Lurhmans’s Great Gatsby and So You Think You Can Dance (season 1).
As a choreographer, she has choreographed numerous dance numbers including 28 episodes of The Fo Fo Figgily Show in Abu Dhabi, featured performance for Paspaley Pearls at Qualia, Hamilton Island, and Zoggs International’s swimwear parades in Sydney.
As a model she has walked the runway for Project Runway Australia, Sydney and Melbourne Fashion Weeks and has headed up advertising campaigns for brands such as NIB Health Insurance, Blanco Kitchens and Brasilfit Sportswear. She has also done tourism shoots for VOMO Island, Fiji and Castaway Island, Fiji.
For the past 5 years Steph has also been a mentoring coach at the Sydney School of Protocol where she teaches the importance of positive body language, posture and presence to businesses and students.
Stephanie and her husband, Tim Maddren, formed Got Ya Back Productions on the NSW Mid North Coast in 2017. Since then, they have created and produced three original touring theatre productions, a feature length film, a drive in cinema, music/corporate videos and 14 separate theatrical productions for aspiring young performers across Taree & Port Macquarie.
Stephanie loves living and working on the Mid North Coast with Tim and their two sons, Banjo and Charlie. She’s proud to have Got Ya Back Productions at the forefront of the regional arts industry, and for this, she’s excited for the industry’s future in the regions.

Tim Maddren (CENTRE BACK)

Tim’s experience in the Australian performing arts industry is broad.

He is a WAAPA grad and as a performer, Tim’s credits include major roles in numerous Australian music theatre touring productions. The Rocky Horror Show, The Addams Family Musical, Topol’s Fiddler on the Roof & Altar Boyz.

He is a former member of the children’s group Hi-5. He filmed 135 episodes, released 3 albums with Sony Music Australia and toured internationally. Whilst in Hi-5 he was nominated, along with the rest of the group, for two TV Week Logie Awards, two ARIA Awards and an Asian Television Award.

As a writer, Tim was invited in 2015 to join the Australian Writers Guild Pathways Program. Since this he has had three original theatrical productions produced/toured and one feature length screenplay now in the early stages of development.

In 2017, he and his wife Stephanie formed Got Ya Back Productions. As producers they have produced 32 separate theatrical productions and toured some throughout NSW and into QLD. In late 2020 Got Ya Back produced their first feature length film.

Tim is also the Artistic Director of the School of Hard Knocks Choir in the Hastings Area.

 

CREATIVES

DIRECTOR: Nicholas Christo

WRITER: Tim Maddren

ORIGINAL CHOREOGRAPHY: Stephanie Maddren, Darren McIntyre & Michael O’Mullane

MOVEMENT DIRECTOR: Amy Campbell

MUSICAL ARRANGEMENTS: Mat Brooker & Tim Maddren