Tony Award winning smash hit, SIX The Musical is a sassy pop-rock musical which remixes the history of the six wives of Henry VIII – Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anna of Cleves, Katherine Howard and Catherine Parr – as they take to the microphone to re-tell their stories and reclaim their rebellious tales. Ahead of hitting Perth’s Crown Theatre from Thursday, November 24 to Saturday, December 10, MELISSA MANN caught up with Associate Director Sharon Miller to find out more about what is coming our way.
Tell us about your role as Associate Director of SIX the Musical Australian Production?
The amazing original West End director Lucy Moss came out in 2019 and directed the first Australian production through to opening. SIX was then left in my creative hands.
Like all international shows, it came to me with an extremely strong template, but I was encouraged to make the Australian production uniquely ours. My role was determining how we would lift them from the page to the stage. As an example, Anne Boleyn is traditionally perceived as a coquettish promiscuous girly character- whereas our Boleyn (played by Kala Gare) is a chillaxed, slightly bogan, empowered Dame. My role is to lead the cast to interpret the essence of the women who lived long ago, but let them speak to us as modern women.
You mentioned Anne Boleyn. Do the audience need a grasp of English history before the show?
Absolutely not. There is a vaguely disguised history lesson hidden in the lyrics and we will tell you an incredible story. You may like to do a five minute Google search before the show, but be warned there is the risk of tumbling down the historical rabbit hole. The stories of these Tudor wives are more interesting than any work of fiction.
What is the biggest challenge in putting together a show of this scale?
I know so many directors say this, but this cast continually humbles me. The talent and commitment blows my mind.
The biggest challenge is getting the cast to pace themselves to get through eight shows a week, yet keep its energy and electricity. To run eight shows a week, but make each one have the spontaneity of the first time. To keep growing and breathing. My job is to keep stimulating and motivating the Queens – to re-fire that inventive spark, so they can keep discovering their characters and ensure the show never becomes stagnant.
This show has similarities to the smash hit Hamilton, not just being a historical revision, but a very specific casting requirement. Where Hamilton’s cast is (almost) entirely performers of colour, you have a cast intentionally female. How has that impacted the show?
They are the closest knit company I have ever worked with. They rehearse together, perform together, and then hang out watching movies together afterwards. Their generosity and camaraderie are amazing.
We have six queens onstage, and three offstage queens (swings) who know all six roles and can go on at the drop of a hat. The swings even have their own fan following on social media. Our incredible choreographer is even a fourth emergency swing should we ever need it. Touring in a time of COVID means you have to be over-prepared. Alongside the Queens we have an all female band of four, known as the Ladies in Waiting, plus female stage management, and female company management. (Sharon then reassures us not to worry, guys love the show too. It’s not a chick flick.)
Okay, so what can the audience expect from SIX the Musical?
It is dark, funny, uplifting and empowering. It is a really fun night out. You just have to look at the 500 million album streams and three billion TikTok views to know this is really catchy music. Getting to tell a true story is a special honour, and the historical element is cheeky and irreverent, but very much a Her-story.
