Description
In the late 1800s, Australian ships arrived in the South Sea Islands. They took children off the beaches, thousands of men and women from the islands, and brought them back to work in North Queensland — to cut sugar cane. Then in 1901, under the White Australia Policy, most were sent back to the islands — but not necessarily back to the islands, they came from.
Through music, song, and adapted oral history, Behind the Cane tells the stories of the ‘blackbirded’. The story of the South Sea Islanders, those who left and those who stayed.
Developed from true stories of the Bowen community, Behind the Cane by Margery & Michael Forde with music composed by Andree Greenwell and David Bridie, is an honest, powerful, and uplifting exploration of an important part of Australian history.
Production History
Behind the Cane was first performed at the Bowen Soundshell, Bowen on July 28, 2011, as part of Queensland Music Festival.
Composed by David Bridie and Andree Greenwell with script and lyrics by Margery Forde and Michael Forde, Behind the Cane was community-driven music theatre, commissioned specially as the signature work the 2011 Queensland Music Festival. Co-presented by the QMF and the Whitsunday Regional Council in association with QUT Creative Industries, Behind the Cane was created with and performed by over 180 Bowen residents and told the story of the South Sea Islanders who were brought to Australia to work in the cane fields in the 19 century.
ISBN: 978 1 921390 44 9