It’s Ralph Myers. Put up your hand if you are surprised? No? No? I think Nick Pickard dropped a big hint…
http://artsjournalist.blogspot.com/2009/10/just-quietly.html
Or was that Bryce Hallett? Either way the whispers to the reveal of Ralph have been a long time coming…

And I have been getting text messages, emails, facebook chats, all asking me what I think of a designer getting “THE TOP JOB”…

(Check out Mr Waites site for quotes and press release bits ‘n’ pieces: http://jameswaites.com/?p=4841

What do I think?

Hmmm…

Well he hasn’t started yet… so I don’t really have an opinion- in fact there is a year of hand-over time- so there is a long wait until I’ll have an opinion.

But I can say this in favour of the incoming King Ralph- he’s certainly done time in independent theatre circles- he’s worked alot. He’s even designed alot of sets I have liked – Peter Grimes his latest triumph. I also stage managed a show he designed back when I was a baby (and I am sure he has a distinct impression of me as a worry wart- yes- I insisted that the 5mm thick rusted metal sheeting we were laying for Jo Couch’s show “Knives in Hens” be got at with an angle grinder and fixed to the floor for the safety of the barefoot actors… It was a pretty unsafe set- beautiful- but I had concerns (unnecessary ones? no, I don’t think so…. if blowtorching 20 years of paint off the back wall of the downstairs theatre without masks is anything to go by…) we even got insurance for the actors….I remember that being a very fraught bump in….) and what I learnt is that designers are very bossy… and I learnt just what a strong vision Prince Ralph had.

Other than that- I love the idea that he is reclaiming the theatre for young people as mentioned in his interview: https://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/11/11/2740140.htm

So I wonder who and what he’ll program? Really keen to see what he comes up with- but we have a year to wait yet… We’ll see then if he continues with the Belvoir house style or stretches beyond. And I wish him luck, patience, strength, humour at being the new dad to the Belvoir family.