GOLD IN THE HEART

Jan 'Yarn' Wositzky

GOLD GOLD GOLD GOLD GOLD

A wonderful combination of characters, music, information and amusing drama, with students joining the performance, taking on various character roles and actively discovering the amazing journeys of many immigrants during the gold rush.
Cathy Sampson, Castlemaine Nth PS

Really complemented our gold rush unit. The music was great, you covered so much good content, there was plenty of material for the teachers to draw on and the way you incorporate so many different perspectives is really excellent.
Brigid Little, St John’s PS, Frankston

BRIEF
Gold In The Heart is brilliant music and story theatre tracking the 1850’s gold rush - European, Chinese and Aboriginal - and events leading to Eureka, with folk songs, poetry, documents, maps, flags, newspaper reports, and with 6 students participating in the performance.

Written and performed by Jan 'Yarn' Wositzky - [url=http://]Bushwackers Band[/url] founder, writer/producer of goldfields audio tours and books - who lives right on the goldfields, GOLD IN THE HEART brings important but little known information into this show, including:

* How the diggers fight against the government Gold License and police brutality began
three years before Eureka, in 1851, with the Monster Meeting of 15,000 diggers near
Castlemaine, then continued through Bendigo’s 1853 Red Ribbon Agitation before it
erupted into bloodshed at Eureka/Ballarat in 1854.

* How women found gold at Bendigo, and the Indigenous Dja Dja Wurrung relationship to gold.

It’s a story of how ordinary people dreamt of a better life, how some made it rich whilst others died and how the diggers came to dig for gold and dug up democracy.

Participation
With scripts sent ahead, 6 students join Jan reading roles in the show.

BOOKINGS
To make a booking or enquiry, simply press the GREEN Enquiry/Booking Request Button above right to directly contact the booking team. They will answer you promptly to discuss your booking including when payment will be required.

Shows for Schools not only gathers all the great available shows, it also makes booking easier!

More Reviews

It was an enjoyable and most informative show and we all gained lots of new insight into life on the gold fields. I hope that you can come again in a couple of year’s time.
Jenny Penaluna, Daylesford Secondary College

It was much enjoyed by staff and students alike. You encapsulated the aspects of the gold rush (geographical, social historical, economic and political) all in one, which was great.
David Senior, Senior School Coordinator, Cheltenham PS

The students loved it! They told me about the songs and instruments and one of the teachers mentioned how inspired they were to write about the gold fields in their afternoon class. All in all they had a fantastic time!
Elaine Keely, St Mary’s, Cohuna

Show Details

Type

incursion

Year Level Suitability

3-6 to 10-12

Curriculum area

The Arts - Drama, The Arts - Music, History, Geography , Languages , Civics And Citizenship

Themes

Australian History, Gold, Gold Rush, Democracy, Class Conflict Between Diggers And Squatters As Represented By Victorian Government, Gold License, Digger's Life, Chinese On Gold Fields, Women On Goldfields, Immigration.

Artform

Drama, Live Music, Music Theatre

Duration

60 minutes plus questions

Cost

$5 per student, with $500 minimum per show (Travel and accomodation may be necessary for some locations.)

School Term:
Term 1, Term 2, Term 3, Term 4

Availability

Jan operates out of Castlemaine, Victoria, and is available all year in Victoria and southern NSW. For elsewhere in Australia it needs to be a string of shows, so please send Jan an enquiry and we'll see if he can come your way.
PRESS THE GREEN BUTTON to directly contact the booking team!

Enquiry/Booking Request