Bonegilla – The migrant’s journey
Simon Reich, the award winning podcast creator and film maker, has used his own father's connection to the Bonegilla reception and training centre, which was Australia's version of America's Ellis Island, to create this multi media presentation including live music.
Using interviews Simon Reich has recorded over five years, he has now created a live show that uses two large screens on stage. One showing the migrant interviews he’s recorded and the second screen showing their photos, old super 8 films and documents. Then to top it all off, Simon will perform the soundtrack using a piano and digital keyboard, to play the emotional soundtrack live on stage.
This is not a “dry and dusty” historical performance, but rather catches the essence of the complete post war migrant experience through 14 former immigrants and their retelling of anecdotes. At times their stories can be harrowing and then suddenly funny, but the main thing you get from this show is the resilience migrants showed, as they changed Australia forever.
You’ll laugh. You’ll cry. But most of all you’ll be truly inspired by these gutsy pioneers who relocated to a country they knew nothing about.