Vespers
Vespers reimagines Walyalup’s waters with a drifting chorus.
On the horizon, a small fleet of couta sailing boats assembles – calling out to the bilya (river), the wardan (ocean), while community gathers along the shoreline. Vespers is a sound, music and performance piece, carried across the river and sea.
An expanded presentation of its 2021 premiere, Vespers, reunites composer Rachael Dease and sound designer Tim Collins with Perth’s community of couta boat custodians and sailors. Over three weekends, these vessels become a floating choir, offering a sonic procession shaped by light, weather and water.
Live-mixed from the shoreline and from aboard the vessels, Vespers unfolds in real time. Boats drift downstream at sunrise and sunset—at once performers, dancers, and orchestra. With three new shows created for each location alongside local community choirs, Dease’s powerful new work is amplified across the water.
Vespers is created for the community, an offering of quietude and connection in uncertain times.
Date, Time and Location
Waylen Bay, Applecross (below goolugatup heathcote reserve)
Sat 15 Nov, 6.15pm
John Tonkin Reserve, East Fremantle
Sat 22 Nov, 6.15pm
Manjaree (Bathers Beach)
Sat 29 Nov & Sun 30 Nov, 7am
Entry
Free
audio-described performance
Sat 15 Nov, 6pm
Image Credit
1. Photo: Rachael Dease, 2021; 2. Photo: DUNCAN WRIGHT; 3. PHOTO: DUNCAN WRIGHT
Rachael Dease’s artistic practice encompasses art music, dance and theatre scoring, installation and songwriting, often with an emphasis on community and connection. While her own music projects have garnered international critical acclaim and multiple awards, Dease is a quintessential and in-demand collaborator – creating large and small scale works across many genres. Classically trained, with a knowledge of sound design and production, she creates music and sound that supports, enhances, elevates, and extends.
Tim Collins is a multifaceted professional in the entertainment industry, working as a sound designer, composer, musician, technician, and tour manager. Since 2001, he has built a diverse career spanning theatre, festivals, concerts, studio production, musical theatre, and live broadcast, with extensive experience in both performance and production logistics. Tim has also contributed to arts education as a mentor and lecturer at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) and Curtin University. His recent composition and sound design credits include Hoods (Barking Gecko Arts) and The Pool (Black Swan State Theatre Company). In 2022, he was awarded the Performing Arts WA Award for Outstanding Sound Design for his work on Cicada (Barking Gecko Theatre).
Waylen Bay, Applecross
The Strand,
Applecross
John Tonkin Reserve, East Fremantle
RIVERSIDE DRIVE,
EAST Fremantle
Manjaree (Bathers Beach Precinct)
Bathers Beach,
Fremantle
More information coming soon…
More information coming soon…
More information coming soon…
