The Clocktower Centre presents three compelling shows celebrating First Nations artists and stories this winter.
The Clocktower Centre continues its vibrant 2025 theatre season with a dedicated focus on First Nations experiences and storytelling. The Moonee Ponds venue will host three distinct productions showcasing Indigenous culture, music and performance throughout July and August.
Clocktower Centre’s winter season
- Proudfoot and Friends: Saturday 5 July at 2pm
- Waltzing the Wilarra: Sunday 20 July at 7.30pm
- Maylene Yinarr Trio – Echoes of the Earth: Wednesday 20 August at 8pm
- Venue: Clocktower Centre, 750 Mt Alexander Road, Moonee Ponds
- Bookings: 9243 9191 or clocktowercentre.com.au
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Proudfoot and Friends
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Leading the programme is award-winning children’s performer Lucas Proudfoot with Proudfoot and Friends, a groundbreaking comedy-musical designed for families with children aged three to seven. The production combines traditional Indigenous storytelling with modern technology, featuring state-of-the-art digital puppeteering and choreographed animated projections alongside guitar, stomp box and didgeridoo.
Proudfoot, a proud First Nations man and father, has established himself as one of Australia’s most dynamic children’s entertainers through his music, books, live performances and television appearances, including guest spots on ABC’s Play School. The show features original characters including respected elder Aunty May, cheeky best friends Ned and Sis, and their magical animal friends, all designed to inspire young audiences to learn about Indigenous cultures and their contribution to Australian communities.
Waltzing the Wilarra
July also brings Waltzing the Wilarra by HIT Productions, the company behind The Sapphires and The Sunshine Club. Written and composed by David Milroy, a Palyku man and key figure in Western Australia’s Indigenous Art Renaissance, this Australian musical is set in a mixed-race dance club in post-World War II Perth.
The production follows characters Charlie, Elsa and Fay on a musical journey through 1940s Perth, exploring themes of racial tension, romance and political satire against a backdrop of curfews and the fear of arrest for consorting. Milroy previously served as Artistic Director of Yirra Yaakin Theatre and has written award-winning plays including Windmill Baby and Cruel Wild Woman.
Maylene Yinarr Trio – Echoes of the Earth
Completing the First Nations programme is Melbourne-born singer-songwriter Maylene Yinarr, who will perform with special guests Phoebe Elsworth and James Seymour in Maylene Yinarr Trio – Echoes of the Earth. Following the release of her debut single This is For Us, Yinarr’s music reflects her Indigenous heritage and personal journey, addressing everyday struggles and triumphs through themes of grief and peace.
Yinarr founded the First Nations Women in Music Victoria collective, which supports women and female-identifying artists navigating the music industry. The organisation is now led by Yorta Yorta woman Allara Pattison Briggs and Gunaikurnai Gunditjamara woman Monica Jasmine Karo.
The programming forms part of the Clocktower Centre’s 25th anniversary celebrations, marking a quarter-century since the venue transformed from the Essendon and Flemington Mechanics Institute into a modern centre for arts and culture.
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