Brisbane families will adventure into a music wonderland when the new cinematic theatre work Music of the Unexpected makes its world premiere at the Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts from Wednesday 1 to Thursday 9 December 2010.

Writer and Producer Anne Roylance says the new Queensland production is an “impulsive adventure story that uses narrative, music and cinematic theatre to celebrate the intrinsic musicality of everyday objects through creative play and improvisation."

“The main character of the story communicates to the audience through a series of live web casts, and throughout the show the character is further manipulated through animation, shadow work and other cinematic techniques.”

The journey begins when a girl, Magz Malone, goes on a mission to investigate the house of her new neighbours, whom she suspects may be scientists, inventors or aliens from outer space.

Music of the Unexpected is not a typical sit-down theatre experience. As Magz ventures from one room to the next, she physically takes the audience with her to discover extraordinary sonic worlds where astonishing things happen. These sonic worlds are created by internationally acclaimed duo Clocked Out (Vanessa Tomlinson and Erik Griswold), who produce music using bottles, bowls, toys, furniture and prepared piano.

“The audience have front row seats to live music making at its finest,” says Anne Roylance. “Vanessa and Erik have composed the most wonderfully evocative music for the show and the audience will see them performing this live, every performance.”

Creating the multi-media element of Music of the Unexpected is Markwell Presents who, since 2003, has produced live cinematic sequences for 119 live performance seasons and over 50 live youth arts projects. In Music of the Unexpected, Markwell Presents works with real objects, video and shadow work to create different moods for each room.

The set for Music of the Unexpected is a series of video screens that clearly define the different rooms in the house next door. Interspersed within each room are interactive clay-based objects produced by visual artists from Multicap Monte Lupo. These original sculptures are multi-faceted as they work both as a visual stimulus and as interactive musical sculptures that produce distinctive, vibrant soundscapes.

To coincide with Music of the Unexpected, Judith Wright Centre is facilitating Ocarina Workshopsn which are only $5 when patrons book to the performance. This hands-on one-hour workshop teaches the art of making an ocarina, an ancient flute-like wind instrument typified by an oval shaped enclosed space with four to twelve finger holes and a mouth tube projecting out from the body. Participants will construct and decorate whistling ocarinas, which will be taken away for firing and then returned to the creators. Students and teachers will be tutored by artists from Monte Lupo Arts.

Music of the Unexpected is suitable for the whole family and plays at Judith Wright Centre from Wednesday 1 to Thursday 9 December with school and family packages available.

For more information, visit www.judithwrightcentre.com or by phone 07 3872 9000.