We were shown an excerpt from Silver Tongue in the rehearsal space at Brand X.Silver Tongue is a bold, funny, wryly inventive and gloriously offbeat re-imagining of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island. Created by breakout Australian talents Miranda Middleton, Jacob Parker and Alec Steedman, and developed by Hayes Theatre Co. over several years, this world premiere has book by Parker and Middleton, and music and lyrics by Steedman.
At the heart of the story are Jim, a young person adrift in the world and wrestling with questions of ambition and identity as they chase after a map and a myth, and the notorious Silver Tongue, a salty, swaggering, magnetic pirate queen who is equal parts mentor, menace and mystery. This unlikely duo set off on a rollicking treasure hunt, where double- and triple-crossing sees them diving into uncharted waters, and ultimately into a whole new quest for truth, redemption and the chance to write their own story.
It’s inspired by Treasure Island, but with a queer, kickass femme lead. It’s a delightful, immersive pirate romp that is, at its essence, about found family. The team comes together lovingly as an ensemble, with the incredibly talented band a huge part of the story and the action. It’s active, connected and compelling, and it’s hard to take your eyes off Billie Palin in the title role.
I interviewed a number of cast and crew. Here are the highlights.
I asked Billie, “What is very much like you in this character, and what is vastly different?” Billie told me Silver Tongue “genuinely loves to have a good time. Even though she has her reasons, she has her walls, she does love people.” The joy, the fun, the magic and the music of the room we had just been in, Billie said, is definitely a part of Billie too. The difference is that Silver Tongue has no filter at all. “She will just say what comes to her head no matter how savage it may seem.” Billie describes being outspoken, maybe a little no filter, but not like that, and says it is something to find a bit more of “because it’s fun.” Aspirational, I’d say.
I then spoke to Marty Alix, who plays Jim and said it was great to be working with some people they already knew, which adds to what they feel is a really safe space. Marty sees Jim as a bit of an ingenue, always up for an adventure and wanting more from life. I asked Marty, “What advice would your character give you, and what advice would you give your character?” Jim would say, “Live out loud!” and Marty would say to Jim, “It’s okay not to know...”
Natalie Abbott plays Dick, Silver Tongue’s right-hand man, who supports Silver Tongue to always have a good time. Natalie said the character’s goal is to be a friend, and it is quite different from previous roles, which has been fun. When I asked what the character’s theme song would be, Natalie answered, “Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life.” Perfect for a pirate crew.
Next I did a video interview with director Richard Carroll. I asked, “What has been the challenge of this show, and what has been an unexpected joy?” The biggest challenge of directing an actor-musician musical, Richard told me, is always the transitions. In a regular musical, the music plays while the set pieces and props are cleared away. “Of course, if everyone’s playing an instrument, who picks up that crate and who clears it?” That’s half the fun, apparently. There have been some very inventive solutions, with a cast of actor-musicians who are very “yes and”, including people offering to push things off with their feet while they play.
The joy is the collaboration. Musical theatre has to be collaborative, with the music department, musicians, musical director, assistant musical director, writers, director and the set, costume, lighting and choreography teams all working together. Richard pointed out that many jobs involve sitting at a desk and staring at a screen all day, whereas making theatre means being in a rehearsal room, talking to people, solving problems together and making offers. Richard referenced Rodgers and Hammerstein, who talked about the costumes looking like the music sounds and the lighting looking like the dialogue sounds, so that all the elements of a show are creating one world. With a brand new musical, that has all been built from the ground up. “It’s really, really cool.”
Finally, I spoke to the clever mind behind it all, the lovely and open-hearted Alec Steedman. I asked how long it has been from inception to now. Alec started writing it in 2020, in the COVID bubble, “one of the silver linings of COVID”, and it is now the end of the sixth year. It’s been a long process, and Alec is glad not to have known how long it would be at the start, because it might not have started. But it has been a joyful one. It was always an actor-musician show in Alec’s mind, thanks in part to being in the original cast of Once, which ignited a love of this niche art form that is becoming such a cultural zeitgeist at the moment.
I also asked whether Alec is a pantser (a writer who flies by the seat of their pants) or a plotter (someone who has it all figured out before putting pen to paper). A bit of both, depending on what the context requires. Early on, Alec was a pantser, and a lot of those songs are still favourites, including “Write My Story”, the big “I want” song of the show. It was the second song written, in Alec’s bedroom, and it “just came out”. Others were planned, like the big belty villain number, where Alec knew the points to hit, the sound it needed and the vibe, and went in with a plan. “I love those numbers too.”
Everyone was an absolute joy to talk to, as were the teams helping us connect with everyone. You can tell this has been a heartfelt journey, and these creatives are being held with care and warmth. I look forward to seeing the show in its entirety. I think it has a bit of something for everyone!
To book tickets to Silver Tongue, please visit https://hayestheatre.com.au/event/silver-tongue/.