SHOWTUNE PRODUCTIONS

COMPANY AIM AND MISSION

Showtune Productions endeavours to bring the highest standard in music theatre and cabaret to Sydney and national audiences. Keeping our vision of existing for the artist and the audience we intend to enhance the art form of music theatre by producing premieres of successful Broadway musicals and nurturing new Australian works.

Our cabaret and concert interests will continue and we will present a larger number of international performers and tour our Sydney cabaret and concert performances around an interstate and regional circuit.

We feel that it is necessary to build a community involvement in music theatre, and stretch the parameters of the form to get a wider demographic of the general public interested. It will be our focus to keep the ticket prices affordable to all those who want to attend our productions.

Through Showtune Productions, we intend to increase the profiles of many of our local music theatre talents through appearances in musicals, concerts, cabarets, recordings and various publicity opportunities.

Showtune Productions has always survived on the energy of the Australian and New York music and theatre scene and intends to continue to listen to the needs and issues of the industry to provide a truly unique production company.

THE HISTORY OF SHOWTUNE PRODUCTIONS

Showtune Productions has been in operation since 1995 and was the dream child of David Hawkins, a Sydney based performer. David has appeared in productions for Opera Australia, Bazmark, Sydney Theatre Company, and as Lee Gordon in Shout! The musical of the Wild One for Jacobsen Entertainment and Really Useful Productions. David started the company to create and produce cabaret shows and small scale musical performances, many of which were staged at Sydney's late, but famed, Tilbury Hotel.

Since Showtune Productions' conception we have produced over 100 cabaret shows in Sydney as well as concerts and performances of new Australian musicals.

In 1996 Showtune Productions opened The Kirk as a cabaret and theatre venue in Surry Hills. It was a huge success and ran for a period of five years. During that time we presented some of Australia's best artists including:

The Kirk became the home for the commercial musical casts and crews on Sunday nights. A series called Show Sheila's Soiree was our largest success, as it provided exposure to newcomers. It featured a headline performer with two newcomers every Sunday. The show ran for over 30 weeks and is still talked about by the industry with fond memory.

We developed and performed three Australian musicals The Happy Prince, The Time Traveller and Lionel and the Dragon. Showtune Productions also staged a concert version of Damn Yankees featuring Leonie Page, Tony Harvey and Margi de Ferranti at the Newtown Theatre.

In 2001 Showtune Productions opened its second venue, Kabarett Junction in the heart of Bondi Junction. The room has been a huge success and has given Sydney a true cabaret venue. The room was opened with David Hawkins' critically acclaimed cabaret show Nom de Plume.

At Kabarett Junction we presented both local and international performers, including Faith Winthrop and John Bucchino from New York, Ruby King from London's East End, and Ireland's Enda Markey. The local performers included:

Our greatest success at Kabarett Junction was “An Intimate Cabaret devised by Jim Sharman” which played to capacity houses for a limited season. The cabaret featured David Hawkins and Amie McKenna with musical direction by Alan John.

In September 2003 we closed Kabarett Junction and open Kabarett Voltaire @ Bar Me in Kings Cross in the former El Rocco Jazz Cellar. The room was a major success and had great response from audience, media and artists. We opened with Lisa Schouw's tribute to Nina Simone "The Other Woman" which ended up having two return seasons, Kaye Tuckerman's "Man-Eater" followed also to huge success. "The Other Woman"and "Man-Eater" along with "Nom de Plume" were selected to be part of the 2004 Adelaide Cabaret Festival.

As part of the 2004 Mardi Gras Arts Festival we produced the Australian debut of Keith Thompson's New York revue "Kooky Tunes", starring Sharon Millerchip, Eddie Perfect, Kaye Tuckerman, and Andrew Benson. Directed by David Hawkins and the Kooky Steps by Ross Coleman with Greg Crease on the keys. The show received outstanding reviews and following its Sydney run it toured to the National Press Club in Canberra and to Chapel off Chapel in Melbourne.

Kabarett Voltaire moved from its Kings Cross location and set up a new venue in The Seymour Theatre Centre in August 2004 it hosted once again many of the country’s best talents the most notable show was Christine Anu’s show “Intimate and Deadly” written with David Hawkins and Wednesday Kennedy about her amazing career it ran to great reviews and we got invites to play all over Australia with it. The next step was huge we presented Australian Solo debut of the International cultural maverick Rufus Wainwright to a sell-out in a day of being on sale, Showtune had out grown small cabaret venues. Christine Anu’s “Intimate and Deadly” toured to the Adelaide Cabaret Festival, Darwin Festival, Queensland Music Festival, The Famous Spiegeltent at the Victorian Arts Centre to great response.

To continue with presenting debut’s of major talents that have not yet appeared in Australia we presented Tony Award ® winning Broadway star Lillias White in 2005, to sell out houses in Sydney and Melbourne. In 2006 we setup an alliance with the Sofitel Melbourne and Nancy Cato and created a new venue for Melbourne the Sofitel Supper Club and presented two more Tony Award ® winning stars Australian debuts Faith Prince, and the legendary Chita Rivera.

After a wicked little out of town try out at The Clarendon Guest House in Katoomba “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” opened to exceptional response and amazing reviews in Sydney @NEWTOWN it went on to play Melbourne, and a return season in Sydney in 2007 at the Tom Mann Theatre for 12 weeks with iOTA playing Hedwig. In 2008 it toured to QPAC in Brisbane and to Karnak Playhouse in Far North Queensland and The Metro Theatre with Michael Falzon playing the title role. The show won a Helpmann Award, Two Green Room Awards and Two Sydney Critic Awards.

In 2007 we launched Paul Capsis’ first studio album at The Enmore Theatre to a sell out house and wild reviews. In 2008 a national tour of Lorna Luft played Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra, Karnak, Gold Coast, and Caloundra to great success. That was followed by two performance of the West End production “Songs My Mother Taught Me” Celebrating the legend of Judy Garland at Her Majesty’s Theatre Melbourne and The Recital Hall Sydney.

CO-PRODUCTION HISTORY

Showtune Productions has also been involved in the development and production of projects with other companies. These include:

Sydney Theatre Company - produced their 2000 Christmas party.

Cameron Mackintosh and the Sydney Theatre Company - produced the Christmas and closing night parties for Rent.

Bazmark - performed research for the movie Moulin Rouge.

Actors Centre Australia - organised the fund raising to create and open a new theatre. The theatre opened in September 2001.

Sydney Mardi Gras Festival 2003 - Fair Day entertainment on behalf of Ozshowbiz cares Equity Fights Aids.

Enmore Theatre and @Newtown - Angry Eddie 2004

Cracker Comedy Festival 2005 ­ Australian Idiot and Little Aussie Battleaxe

The Famous Spiegeltent & Melbourne International Festival 2004 - Micheline Van Hautem Sydney debut

Michael Chugg Entertainment - co-produced Rufus Wainwright at Voltaire Feb 2005

Michael Chugg Entertainment ­ e-marketing support on Bette Midler Tour 2005