Robyn Archer Online - the depArcher lounge
Home
Latest words
Selected works This section contains a number of pages
Music room This section contains a number of pages
Photo gallery
Biography & CV
Favourite sites
Contact Robyn
Buy CDs at Chaosmusic

 

Download Biography
Biography in Microsoft Word format Biography in Adobe PDF format
view cv

 

 Biography

Photograph of Robyn leaning against a wall by Robyn Lea

Robyn Archer is a singer, writer , director , Artistic Director and public advocate of the Arts. In all of these roles her reach is global. In 2010 she has given concerts in Honolulu, Adelaide and Port Fairy: in February 2011 she will sing Brecht in his birthplace ,Augsburg, at the Brecht and Music festival. Recent keynote addresses have been widely praised and a collection was published in 2010 by UWA press under the title Detritus. She is in constant demand throughout the world as a speaker on the Arts and recent destinations have been Varna ( Bulgaria), Perth and all points east in Australia, Vancouver, Prague, Seoul, London, Ghent: there are new invitations to Jeju ( Korea) , Glasgow, Sydney, Townsville, Mackay, Yolgnu Land ( NT).
Her most recent play Architektin premiered in Adelaide in Sept 2008, and she spent 5 weeks at Carnegie Mellon SChool of Drama in Pittsburgh March/April 2009 directing a theatrical cabaret which she devised.

Robyn is currently the Creative Director of The Centenary of Canberra ( 2013) and Artistic Director of The Light in Winter which she created for Federation Square in Melbourne . She is devising the program for the 5th World Summit on Arts and Culture ( Melbourne October 3-6 2011) and advising on the National Gallery of Victoria's 150th celebrations in 2011. She was recently appointed as Adjunct Professor to the University of Canberra.

Her specialty of the songs of Brecht /Weill /Eisler and Weimar culture generally have marked her out internationally, and her landmark recordings with the London Sinfonietta ,Songs For Bad Times Vols 1 and 2 , are now available as digital downloads . She continues to sing an eclectic repertoire including her own songs and much of the back catalogue is also now available through Chaos Music from this site, or as digital download.

Robyn was Artistic Director of the National Festival of Australian Theatre in Canberra for three years and of the Adelaide Festival in 1998 and 2000. She was chair of the Australia Council's Community Cultural Development Board, a consultant to the new Melbourne Museum for three years and advisor on the Australian cultural content for EXPO 2000 in Hannover. She created a new celebration of the arts for Tasmania: Ten Days on the Island . Robyn was artistic director of the Melbourne International Arts Festival 2002, 2003 , 2004 and created a trilogy of festivals there : TEXT BODY VOICE. For two years Robyn has worked on Liverpool European Capital of Culture, and was adviser to the startup of Luminato , a new festival for Toronto. In 2008 she curated the Deakin Lectures , served as juror for Culture France's Danses Caribes in Cuba, went to the Australia 2020 Summit , was formal mentor to Arts Mildura, and was juror for the Victorian Premier's Literary Prize.
Robyn is an Officer of the Order of Australia, Chevalier du l'Ordre des Arts at des Lettres( France), Officer of the Crown ( Belgium) and holds honorary doctorates from Flinders and Sydney Universities. In 2006 in New York she was awarded the International Citation of Merit by the International Society of Performing Arts and in 2009 the Dame Elizabeth Murdoch Cultural leadership Award for ABAF. She is the Patron of The Australian Art Orchestra ( Melbourne), Brink Productions ( Adelaide), The Australian Script Centre ( Hobart) and The Arts Law Society( Sydney) and most recently co-patron ( with Judge Ian North) of the institute of Postcolonial Studies ( Melbourne), as well as maintaining ties with RMIT's Globalism Insititute and the International Women's Development Agency.

Download CV
CV in Microsoft Word format CV in Adobe PDF format
CV image - same as High Res Tiff
Download Photos
Zipped TIFF format images

(2.37MB Zipped TIFFs)

 
CV

Education B.A. (Hons Eng), Dip. Ed. (Adelaide University) Honours Doctor of the University (Flinders University), Hon D Litt ( University of Sydney) , Officer of the Order of Australia ( Australia) Chevalier du l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres ( France) , Officer of the Order of the Crown ( Belgium) , International Citation of Merit ( International Society of Performing Arts) , Federation Medal , Member European House of Culture Awards The Sydney Critics' Circle Award (1980),The Henry Lawson Award (1980), Australian Creative Fellowship(1991-93), ARIA Awards (Best Soundtrack - Pack of Women 1986; Best Children's Album -Mrs Bottle 1989); AFI nomination for Lowering the Tone (Don Featherstone's TV biog); AWGIE nomination for best children's play (Mrs Bottle) Australian Women's Network Executive Woman of the Year ( 1998) SA Great's Arts and Culture Award ( 1998 and 2000), Dame Elisabeth Murdoch Cultural leadership Award ( 2009)
Roles : currently Creative Director of the Centenary of Canberra ( 2013), Artistic Director of The Light in Winter ( Federation Square, Melbourne), director World Summit on Arts and Culture ( Melbourne October 2011), Chair - Artistic Advisory Board Adelaide College of the Arts; Patron - Brink Productions , Arts Law Society, Australian Art Orchestra, Australian Script Centre, Institute of Postcolonial Studies, Ambassador Adelaide Football Club, International Development Agency.
Formerly:
Artistic Director - National Festival of Australian Theatre ( 1993-5), Adelaide Festival of Arts ( 1998 and 2000), Melbourne International Arts Festival ( 2002-5), Creator and Advisor to the Artistic Program of Ten Days on the Island ( 2001- 5) , Artistic Director European Capital of Culture; Member - Australian International Cultural Council ,Member of the Board of Directors- International Society of Performing Arts( 2000-2006 ), Member of Council - Victorian College of the Arts ( 2002-2004), Inaugural Ambassador- Adelaide Festival Centre, Trustee - The Don Dunstan Foundation, Patron - The National Script Centre ,Official Ambassador - the Adelaide Crows, RMIT Global Sustainability Leader ,Artistic Director Adelaide Festival (1998 and 2000) Artistic Advisor Australia Day, Hannover EXPO 2000 Artistic Director National Festival of Australian Theatre ( 1993-95) Chair Community Cultural Development Board, Australia Council (1993-5) Commonwealth Appointee to the Centenary of Federation Advisory Committee (1994) Artistic Counsel Belvoir Street Theatre ( 1986) Patron- National Affiliation of Arts Educators, Member of the Board - Helpmann Academy


Performance - Roles Annie I, The Seven Deadly Sins ( Adelaide 1974,1993 and Sydney Opera House 93) ; Jenny,The Threepenny Opera ( 1976) ; Brecht Compilations , Never The Twain (Adelaide Festival Centre,Sydney Opera House , To Those Born Later &Sung and Unsung (National Theatre of Great Britain) Brecht & Co (Sydney Opera House, Hong Kong Arts Centre) ; Pierrot Lunaire(Sydney) ;Out of the East (Paris, London, New York ); Mrs Peachum, The Threepenny Opera(1999) One woman shows: Tonight Lola Blau (Australian Tour) ; A Star is Torn ( 2 Australian tours, Theatre Royal Stratford East, Wyndham's Theatre London West End); Five Nights in the Monsoon (Mount Gambier) Theatrical Caberets The Pack of Women (London); Kold Komfort Kaffee and Scandals (Australian tours); Cabaret Passe (London's Live Radio Show and Paris Theatre,London) Cafe Fledermaus (to open the Merlyn Theatre for Playbox, Melbourne ;Sydney) Le Chat Noir (Inaugural Brisbane International Music Biennial, Australian Theatre Festival Canberra, Adelaide Cabaret Festival ) See Ya Next Century ! ( Festivals of Sydney, Perth, Performing Lines Melbourne) , Whispering ( Adelaide 2004) , The Arts of Small Forms : 1. French, 2. German ( Canberra Nov 2008)


National Concert Tours The Ladies Choice (1977), Rough as Guts (1980), Robyn Archer Sings Brecht / At Large (1982), Robyn Archer National Tour (1985) , Robyn Archer and The Mambologists (1988/89), Ancient Wonders (1993/94), Concerts for Melbourne Music Festival (94), Composing Women's Festival (Melbourne 94), Keep Up Your Standards ( 95-2000) Brisbane, Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra) Songs of the Weimar period (96/97/98) The New York Gig (Brisbane,Adelaide 2002) , iprotest! ( Adelaide , Melbourne 2005, Canberra 2008))


International Concert Tours South East Asia - Rangoon, Dhaka, Singapore, Bangkok,Chiang Mai (Dept of Foreign Affairs) , Vienna (with composer Wilhelm Zobl), Holland - Hertigen Bosch (1989) Mexico - Guanajuato, Mexico City (Department of Foreign Affairs), UK -Warwick Arts Centre, Donmar Warehouse London, 1989), Canada -Halifax (with Symphony Nova Scotia, 1991) South America-Bogota (1996), Netherlands/UK -Amsterdam , Hertigen Bosch, London (1998) , New York City, Guggenheim Museum ( 1998) The New York Gig ( with Paul Grabowsky ),( New York October 2001) ( Zurich, Berlin 2002) ( Slovenia 2003) , Oxford ( 2005) , London 2007, Honolulu 2010, Brecht & Music Festival, Augsburg 2011>

Television Performance Songs For Bad Times (Channel 4,UK) ; Cabaret (BBC2 UK) , The Pack of Women (ABC, Australia); The Great Debate (ABC) (Respect Men) (Arts End) commentator inaugural broadcast Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras (ABC, Australia) ; Once in a Blue Moon (ABC, Australia) ; Lowering the Tone - 45 Years of Robyn Archer (one hour documentary ,Don Featherstone Productions, ABC ,nominated for an AFI award); Three of a Kind (ABC); Solidarity Song - a biography of Hanns Eisler (Rhombus Media / ZDF Berlin): The One That Got Away (ABC) . Frequent guest appearances including The Michael Parkinson Show, Clive James at Home Good News Week (ABC); Adelaide Festival 1998 ( ABC national 3 part series) , David Frost New Year Special, The Midday Show, Tonight Live, Review, Dateline, Denton, Express


Recording The Ladies Choice (Larrikin, LRF 023), The Wild Girl in the Heart (Larrikin,LRF 027), Rough as Guts (Powderworks,RCA,ARM 5003/4) ,Tonight Lola Blau(Powderworks,RCA,ARM 5002) A Star is Torn [soundtrack](Powderworks),[e.p.] (Cube,London) , Robyn Archer Sings Brecht (EMI OASD 4166), [Volume 2] (EMI OASD 270049), [CD Compliation] (EMI CDC 7 47576), Ancient Wonders (Larrikin LRF 276) The Pack of Women (ABC Records,L38639)- won the ARIA soundtrack of the year 1986, 0 - 9(ABC Records for kids), Mrs Bottle's Absolutely Blurtingly Beautiful World-Beating Burp (ABC Records 846 218 1/4/2)- won Children's Record of the year 1990 ARIA awards. Boojum (Sounds Australian), Once in a Blue Moon (ABC records), Keep Up Your Standards ( Walkabout Larrikin LRF 483), Old Songs New Century ( unreleased ) Songs For Bad Times Vols 1 & 2 ( Festival Records)


Writing: Theatre Kold Komfort Kaffee (Sydney,Adelaide), The Pack of Women (London,Australia,Auckland), Cut and Thrust Cabaret (London), Scandals (Sydney,Melbourne,Adelaide), A Star is Torn(Australia,London,Sweden, Norway), Songs From Sideshow Alley (Adelaide ,Sydney,Perth), The Conquest of Carmen Miranda (Adelaide, Sydney, Perth, Brisbane), Il Magnifico (Sydney), The Three Legends of Kra (Adelaide Festival commission, Opening Festival for Queensland Arts Centre), Akwanso Fly South (Adelaide Festival & tour), Cafe Fledermaus (Opening production Merlyn Theatre, Malthouse - Melbourne; Belvoir Street, Sydney), Comes a Cropper (commission Monstrous Regiment - London, UK tour) Mrs Bottle's Absolutely Blurtingly Beautiful World-Beating Burp (Adelaide, AWGIE nomination for Best Stageplay 1990) Poor Johanna (with Judith Rodriguez, Adelaide 1994) The Hanging of Minnie Thwaites (with Judith Rodriguez, unproduced), Club Nocturne (commission for Understudies, Aust, unproduced) Le Chat Noir ( for The Seymour Group, premiere Brisbane Biennale May 1991, Australian Theatre Festival, Canberra ), Cuisine Africaine (for Dorinda Hafner, Adelaide) Winter in Paris, Summer in Nohant (unproduced) The Bridge (Perth) See Ya Next Century ! (Sydney,Melbourne,Perth), Ningali (Fremantle, Canberra, Melbourne, Vic Country tour, Berlin, Bonn, Edinburgh, London, UK regional tour,Sydney,Wellington ), Sappho Sings the Blues ( Fremantle and WA tour), Architektin Writing: Lyrics & Libertti Mambo opera in one act (music Javier Alvarez), Sahara Dust song cycle (music Lindsay Cooper), The Last Decade cabaret song cycle (music Allan John) The Big Picture (music Agostin Fernandez), approx 150 APRA registered songs Writing: Television Songs For Bad Times (assistant writer,Channel Four,UK), The Conquest of Carmen Miranda (SBS, Australia) The Pack of Women (ABC, Australia) , Songs From Sideshow Alley (ESTV unprod) New Theatre For a New Australia (SBS), The One That Got Away (ABC) Writing: Radio A Colonial Cabaret and Cabaret Passe (Both BBC) Cafe Fledermaus(ABC) Livewire (ABC) Writing: Books The Robyn Archer Songbook (McPhee Gribble,Melbourne,1980) Mrs Bottle Burps (Nelson,Melbourne,1983) The Pack of Women (Penguin Australia,Melbourne 1986) A Star is Torn (with Diana Simmonds; Virago,London 1986;Dutton,USA 1987;Japan 1990) Contributor to : Australia Fair (ed. Braddon,Methuen,London 1984) ; The All Australian HaHa Book (Oxford University Press,Melbourne,1983) ; Mrs Bottle's Absolutely Blurtingly Beautiful World-Beating Burp (ABC Books, Sydney 1990); various journals, magazines, newspaper; Cafe Fledermaus(Currency Press,Sydney 1990); Poor Johanna in The Penguin Anthology of Contemporary Australian Women's Writing (Penguin, Melbourne, 1991); Loaves and Wishes (Virago 1992); Hope and Fear (Flinders University Press 1995) Fortnightly column for Advertiser newspaper(1999) , The Myth of the Mainstream ( Currency House 2005),Reflecting Identity : the inevitable role of culture( Menzies Lecture 2006 - King's College London); Unconditional Love ( Wal Cherry Lecture 2008 - Griffith Review); Australian Greats ( Random ed Peter Cochrane 2008), Detritus ( UWA Press 2010)

Directing Theatre: The Pack of Women (Australian tour) ; Cut & Thrust Cabaret (London) ; Scandals ( Australian tour) ; On Parliament Hill by Noel Greig (Sydney) ;ABC by David Holman (Sydney); Akwanso Fly South(Adelaide Festival,Australian tour); Mayday & Labour of Love (large-scale community projects, Darwin, for NTTLC and Hobart for TTLC); Le Chat Noir (Brisbane,Canberra); The Bridge (Perth); Accidental Death of an Anarchist by Dario Fo (Adelaide,Sydney); Boy Hamlet (Brisbane) ; January by Tim Finn/Dorthy Porter( showcase Nov 2008); Lust Money and Bertolt Brecht ( Pittsburgh 2009)

 

  
© 2003 Robyn Archer - Built By Digital Eskimo