*** In this unprecedented time, when our industry is in free-fall, we at Watch This are doing our utmost to survive and continue to deliver work for artists and audiences. If you have means, we humbly invite our patrons and supporters to consider a timely tax-deductible donation towards our ongoing operation. This year will be an exceptional challenge for vulnerable independent organisations like ours - many fighting not to go under - so your generous support would go a very long way. ***
Australia's first and only Sondheim repertory company, Watch This is a bold, grass-roots organisation presenting outstanding, sophisticated musical theatre to audiences in Melbourne and regional Victoria. Our ambition and commitment to the highest production/ performance standards attract teams of wonderfully talented artists and creatives.
Heading into our ninth year, we've garnered an enviable reputation in a highly competitive field, boasting twenty-one Green Room Award nominations alongside multi-million dollar commercial and state sponsored productions, with Adrian Li Donni (Pacific Overtures, 2014) and Johanna Allen (A Little Night Music, 2018) winning Best Supporting Actor and Actress respectively. (Check out the latest round of Green Room Award nominations here.) We have also broken ground by successfully touring full-scale musicals to regional centres.
We are passionate about creating exciting, immediate theatrical experiences for theatre-goers. We are also committed to ensuring that these experiences are available to as many people as possible - a philosophy that informs the relatively simple matter of ticket pricing to more complex touring proposals.
Past productions include Assassins, Pacific Overtures, Company, Merrily We Roll Along, A Little Night Music and most recently, Sunday in the Park with George. All projects to date have been made possible by the generosity of the Lyngala Foundation and other visionary individuals/ organisations, including the Opera & Arts Support Group and Robert Salzer Foundation. Since 2016, Watch This has recently been included on the Register of Cultural Organisations - an incredible endorsement of our contribution to the sector.
To Support our dynamic and visionary organisation, we invite you to make a tax deductible donation today!
Following the recent announcement in Victoria of the roadmap to deliver the national COVID plan, it is clear that our intended October/November season of Into the Woods is unable to proceed.
We announced this production in 2019, and have had to shift our dates twice already... So why not once more?
We are currently engaged in positive discussions with our venue, Meat Market, to secure new production dates in January 2022 – these will be announced soon. Until then, we hope that those of you who have purchased tickets will hold onto them, and allow us to transfer them to the new dates once these are confirmed. Of course, if you'd prefer a refund, so that you can re-book your own tickets once the new dates are announced, we will gladly arrange that for you.
We will be in touch with all ticket holders within the next 24 hours to provide further instruction and assistance.
Finally, a huge thank you to everyone who has supported us on this journey so far, either by buying tickets or generously donating to our fundraising campaign. We could easily have been forced to throw in the towel if not for the demand from audiences and the passion and tenacity of our cast and creative team who, in the face of some enormous challenges, remain determined to bring this exciting new production to life.
In solidarity,
Mel & Dean
Watch This Co-Artistic Directors