Pecking at Your Head: The Flight and Fall of 'Magpie'

'Magpie' was the name of the company run by the South Australian Theatre Company (SATC)1 for children and young people for a quarter of a century. Magpie's embryonic form, the Saturday Company, was founded in 1972; the company hatched as Magpie in 1976, was reincarnated as Magpie2 in 1997, and was 'killed off' at the end of that year. In a theatrical arena, the company created a formidable canon of new work and made a respected contribution to the dcvclopmenl of innovative theatre forms; in the educational arena, the company offered an array of broad-ranging and specific programmes in drama-in-education (DIE)2 and theatre-in-cducation (TIE) ; in a social and political arena, major issues were reflected and addressed by Magpie. Funded by the Australia Council and considered a 'wing' of the parent company, Magpie's artistic directors had autonomy in programming until 1994 and enjoyed access, together with the main-stage 'Playhouse' company, to the technical facilities of the SATC. Records, which were not always kept, show that over a quarter of a million people witnessed Magpie performances, although the real total could be much higher. It can be said with confidence that Magpie was an influential company in the development of theatre for young people Australia-wide. There were nine artistic directors during the life-span of Magpie; Geoffrey Rush, the fourth, coined the phrase, 'Pecking at Your Head' as his company slogan. He believed: Theatre as a function or an event is nothing like school, nor should it be. It's got to be something that comes in, cuts a swathe through the minds of the children - pecks at their heads.4 Theatre for the young was not to be just an entertaining experience - although entertainment came first - nor educational to the detriment of fun and theatricality, but a thrilling and stimulating occurrence that made some kind of impact on the minds and emotions of the young. The other directors of Magpie subscribed to this philosophy each in his or her own way. The shift of focus within this parameter, as each successive Director explored a unique vision, provides a rare overview of a multiplicity of approaches to Theatre for Young People.5 Magpie is hatched and goes 'On the Wing' (1972-1983) The SATC established a Youth Activities branch in 1972; Helmut Bakaitis was appointed as its director and remained until 1976. His approach was political, influenced by the radical Melbourne theatrical environment from which he emerged and informed by the educational ideas promulgated in Britain by Peter Slade, Brian Way and in particular, Dorothy Heathcote. He established the Saturday Company - a youth theatre6 company - and the Youth Activities Team, which functioned as a drama-in-education team focusing on upper primary children. Bakaitis believed in the developmental potential of drama as a methodology in the education of the whole person and as a strategy to help children understand and question the world around them, reflect upon it, accept it, or see a need for reform. Eighty teenagers from across Adelaide formed the first Saturday Company. Bakaitis was offered Carclew as a venue, an old Adelaide mansion of considerable architectural beauty and interest with a large garden. The company devised street theatre, a rock'n'roll cabaret and 'happenings' for Adelaide's biennial Come Out Festival for children. The first of two full-scale productions was The Lay of Sir Orfeo (1975), a project linked to the curriculum and the study of Middle English. Based on the medieval narrative poem, the company worked on the development of the presentation for nearly a year under Bakaitis' direction.7 The stage of the newly built Space Theatre was opened into the huge workshop behind, forming an immense performance venue which broke completely away from proscenium-framed theatre and offered innovative opportunities for actor/audience integration. The company constructed the city of Winchester out of cardboard, with stages set all around the 'town' (the SATC provided professional designers to aid the young people). …

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