Travel through space and time on a journey of discovery and connection with the inspiring Melbourne premiere season of Ada, Asmin and The Analytical Engine. Co-written and co-directed by Sarah Kriegler and made in collaboration with math teacher and Turkish refugee, Deniz Aslan, the work marries the real-life experiences of girls worldwide who have been denied an education with the story of Ada Lovelace, and her world-altering inventions. Asmin’s story is a tribute to all the many girls Aslan taught and who have had to fight for their education.
While the story does examine the life of Ada Lovelace and her work it, more importantly, is a framework which examines what it was like (and sadly still like) for many girls to access education. “At the time Ada Lovelace lived, girls in England were not allowed to go to school or university,” says Kriegler . “We use Ada’s story to compare and contrast what access to education is like for girls in Australia and also in Turkey through the story of Asmin; a newly arrived Turkish-Kurdish refugee dealing with remote learning during covid.”
Through this story, Kriegler wants audiences to consider how far girls can go if we make space for them to reach their full potential, and how this can only benefit the world.
“I mean, Ada Lovelace, despite the repression she lived under, is attributed with being the world’s first computer programmer 200 years before we had the technology to build the first computer,” says Kriegler. “Imagine if she’s been allowed to reach her full potential!! What would she have achieved then with her whip-smart thinking and extraordinary imagination?”
Interestingly, Kriegler’s daughter Ada was quite influential in the work’s creation and is now playing Ada Lovelace in the show.
“In 2017, we were making a work called ‘Picasso and His Dog’, based on the life of Pablo Picasso and his sausage dog called Lump,” says Kriegler. “At that time, my daughter Ada was almost 10 years old and because of her name, had been given a book called “Ada’s Ideas; The Story of Ada Lovelace, the World’s First Computer Programmer” She walked up to me with all the earnestness of a 10-year-old and said, “You should make this story next because Ada Lovelace was great!” It took us until 2020 to start making this show, but Ada was right, Ada Lovelace and her story is great.”
Staged by award-winning independent theatre company, Lemony S Puppet Theatre, the show uses a partnership of performers and puppeteers to bring the action to life. In fact, the creators use puppets in three different ways.
Kriegler explains, “Firstly, one of the main characters of the show is Mrs Puff. Mrs Puff is a cat (played by a puppet) and is based on a real-life cat Ada Lovelace had as a kid. In our story, Mrs Puff is a connector of lonely girls, and she connects Ada and Asmin across timeframes.
We also use puppetry to express memories in the show. When Asmin is talking about how and why she had to flee Turkey, we use a combination of shadow and rod puppetry to play out these elements of the story. When Ada is remembering things from her past too, we also use this technique. It works like a flash back in film – giving a different quality to what the audience is viewing.
Puppetry is also used to express things in Asmin’s world such as what she sees on her computer and the maths problems she is struggling with during remote learning.
Puppetry allows us to create very filmic qualities on-stage and to create a sense of magic realism. We like to combine it with actors to expand and extend what is possible onstage within our stories.”
A work of this size should expect some challenges, and Kriegler acknowledges there have been a few.
“Firstly, we began this work during 2020 …not sure if you remember that ‘little’ thing that happened to the world in 2020? Well, that was our first challenge and delayed the premiere of this work by about two years.
Then, once the world of theatre got back on its feet and it was looking like we could get the show up, our original producers of the work, Critical Stages, went into receivership and collapsed. I’m still not exactly sure what happened there but the repercussions of this were huge for us as our grant money for the show was tied up in their finances. It’s still not 100% sorted but its closer than it was.
But, when we were FINALLY able to make this work for its premiere season at Riverside Theatre in April this year, it was an utter joy, through and through. We have a stellar team of artists around this work and the two young actors at the centre give the work such heart and passion, it’s been fabulous from the moment we started.”
Another joy for Kriegler has been directing her daughter, Ada.
“Actually, it’s been amazing! She’s a total pro!! As she is quite the chatterer, I was worried that she’d struggle to focus and trust me as a director, but it’s been the opposite. She seems to have learnt by osmosis how to be on-stage and how to be in a rehearsal room. Which is maybe not surprising as she basically grew up in rehearsal rooms and backstage of Melbourne’s theatres.”
Kriegler is one of the co-founders of Lemony S Puppet Theatre, who have a commitment to extending the form of puppetry beyond what is expected and constantly re-invent their practice, developing new styles and performance techniques. Based in Melbourne, their works have been seen throughout Australia and across the world
It all started with an opportunity to make a work for adults that premiered in the Tower Theatre at the Malthouse in 2007 and grew from there. “Both myself and co-founder, Jacob Williams, had been working as puppeteers and theatre makers independently,” says Kriegler. “Lemony S bought our talents together into one company. Over the years it has expanded to include many fabulous artists from across Australia. One of our main collaborators is Ben Grant. He has been involved in nearly all our shows in some way either as an actor, a dramaturg, co-writer or composer and feels integral to the work.”
But as a creative what sorts of stories does Kriegler. most like to tell?
” It’s hard to define what type of story we tell as each one of them is so different. I think what links all the works is the way we use puppetry to express different parts of what’s being told. Lemony S artists are masters at using puppetry to its fullest advantage. We know the tricks and techniques that mean your heart strings are stretched, and your funny bone is activated.”
Running for two shows only at Bowery Theatre in St Albans, Ada, Asmin and The Analytical Engine is an inspiring new adventure told through the beautiful magical realism for which Lemony S Puppet Theatre are renowned.
Says Kriegler, “This work is pure heart. The two young actors at the centre perform a story that they helped develop and that they are very passionate about and this shines through the work and is so inspiring to watch. This is the work to bring your eight-years to this Fringe. It will make them laugh and gasp, learn a bit and feel a lot.”
October 12 – 13
www.melbournefringe.com.au/event/ada-asmin-the-analytical-engine/
