From Mudfest Ticketing

Hello Mudfesters!
So guess what? Mudfest’s Opening Night Adventure Party has SOLD OUT.
That’s right! You are one of only one hundred and fifty super-lucky
folks with the golden ticket granting access to Mudfest’s top-secret
and soon-to-be-revealed Mudclub.
We would love for you to let us know how Adventurous you are feeling.

The Opening Night Adventure Party will extend beyond the toasting and
welcoming ceremony at the VCA. In fact, it will include an entire
cross-city extravaganza involving tram performances, a nighttime
journey through the Boulevard of Light at Parkville, and finally, of
course, a boogie-on-down at the Mudclub. What we’d like to know is if
you have signed up for the full-monty all the way to Mudclub, or just
for the highly sophisticated and lovely welcoming drinks at the VCA.
Thank you, friends, for letting us know. This is to guarantee that we
can accomodate all those party animals that prefer to hit up the
Mudclub only and skip the formalities (which is VERY boring of them),
ensuring everyone fits in our tidy lil’ Club.

We’re looking forward to seeing you there like we once looked forward
to Harry Potter.

Here’s to a killer Mudfest, and a big, fat, artistic kaboom that
sparkles in the Melbourne sky.

Cheers friends!
The Mudfest Team

Important The Happening Information!!

What is the Happening? Well what indeed - things are heating up with Mudfest with The Happening issuing WARNING STATEMENTS about what is entailed when participating. It looks like a lot of fun and a lot of colour!!

Here's the warning:

There is to be used powdered pigment paint that is going to make into a normal paint consistency, however the dyes are natural and they stain hair, skin and nails. TAKE NOTE we need to get as few people as possible complaining that their favourite dress is  now multi coloured.

So the things that need to be noted  that might get stained are: the paint will stain skin, hair and nails. To prevent this people can put olive or canola oil in their hair then it will wash out after. To prevent stains on skin people can put moisturising lotion on their skin. For nails people can simply paint their nails a dark colour and then remove the varnish.

We here suggest that you put on old leggings and a t-shirt and get into the fun and the games!

Also, the dyes are all natural but there is always a risk that people may have a reaction, as is with anything you put on your skin, so maybe wear long sleeves.

Anyways, it is all a-happening at the happening Sat 20th in the Mudclub from 10pm. Be there!

PROGRAM CHANGE!

Q: What do Lally Katz, playwriting, the first official mudfest event and pizza have in common??? (...OK, so the first two...yeah whatever, sue me...)

A: You can experience them all together THIS THURSDAY 1:30 to 3:30 when Lally runs the first Mudfest Creative Writing Workshop.

Book your place: http://www.trybooking.com/Book​ing/BookingSections.aspx?eid=1​2561&did=36538

FIRST CREATIVE WRITING WORKSHOP IS NOW ON THIS THURSDAY 18TH AUG AT 1.30PM.

Muddy Arts Officers

All these lovely shots are by Danny Phung and some are being used for official publicity purposes. Dani and Justin are the Artistic Directors; Festival Directors and Arts Officers for Mudfest 2011. They wear many hats and are fabulously hardworking and committed to this festival.

A further incentive to volunteer!

... as if you needed one!


The Mudclub is a hub for the entire festival where artists and audience can relax, watch performances and enjoy the exciting creative atmosphere that only comes around every two years! The Mudclub is also hosting a number of special one-off performances, so volunteers you will not miss out on any festival magic.

What would we like from you? Not an arm and a leg. We know that people have lives to live, so each night of the festival has been broken up into three easy shifts. The shortest is 2.5 hours long, the longest is 3.5 hours. That's all! A timetable of available shifts will be sent out shortly for you all to pick and choose the times that best suit you. Easy!

If you do not have a current RSA but are interested in volunteering, please contact me.
 Many hands make light work and there will be a role for you! We have a bar to operate, but also a whole venue to fill with Muddy crowds, and the opportunities here and endless - we'd like roving performers, bar hands, a hospitality team... We'll welcome other ideas that you bring to the table. Please email the Mudfest information email with Attn SHARON in the subject line with any questions, concerns or for more information. If for some reason you are unable to volunteer, reply to this address to let me know.

How we will show our thanks - As if you needed more incentive! We will provide you with a certificate of participation, for those of you building up your experience in bar or hospitality work, and a Muddy tee!

Thank you all for your expressions of interest. Such events would not be possible without your contribution! I am looking forward to working with you all.

Note the bold!

Muddy Mondays and Massive Developments!

Well, today was a busy one for everyone involved in Mudfest. It has been a MAJOR day as well for everyone associated with the festival. So today

THE MUDFEST WEBSITE IS LIVE

and also dear patrons of the arts

TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE.

It doesn't get more real than that!

Sustainability Statement (Part 1)

Hi All,

We have just been provided with an AWESOME and very comprehensive Sustainability Statement for Mudfest 2011. So.... We are going to upload it as images in sections. This is the first section. Enjoy - it makes for v. interesting readings. There are copies of this available on request and artists will be provided with copy shortly. Email us or the sustainability collective with any enquiries.

Ushers Wanted! # 2

In an official leak from the Operations team we are pleased to announce that they have filled our first 3 of the over 150 usher positions for the festival (yay!)

Ushering is a great way to see shows and be involved in Mudfest this year! If people are interested in ushering or front of house managing they can email ushers.mudfest@gmail.com - it is quite important to register and get this all ready to go soon!

A Very Special (un)Official Announcement

In some exciting news it has been revealed that the lovely Alison Croggon of Theatre Notes is going to be a sort-of-Ambassador for Mudfest 2011. This means that she will be attending and engaging with the works online. Check out her blog at:

http://theatrenotes.blogspot.com/

And stay tuned for some AWESOME Mufest related writing.

MUDDY WORKING BEE!!

As Mudfest 2011 is entirely paper-free, we need to get crafty with the publicity for the festival and each individual show, so the Mudfest team will be hosting a working bee from 10am-4pm on Monday 18th and Tuesday 19th July (during o-week). Bring: friends and any crafty supplies you have at home! In the Arts Lab in Union House.

So far we are planning:
- Stencils fo...r chalking around the campuses
- TShirt/other fabulous outfit making
- Bunting!
- Making the information booth, which will hopefully be mobile
- Boards for event listings at venues
- Anything else we can think of!

[PS: Just to be clear, the working bee runs from 10-4 on Monday and Tuesday. It's not a 30 hour event, as appealing as that may be.]

IT WILL BE MARVELOUS AND FANTASTIC AND WONDERFUL AND AMAZING. SO COME!!! X

Techie's Required for Mudfest Shows!

TECHIES REQUIRED!!

We're looking for enthusiastic, capable sound and light technicians to handle two of Mudfest's final shows, Edward Albee's 'The Zoo Story' and ROC 'UM's 'iQuest: the musical'. Over the week ...23-27th August, you'll get to run both the absurdist lights and sounds for Zoo Story as well as the energetic, vibrant rock opera designs for iQuest.

This is a one- off opportunity for a creative, experienced individual looking for something different. An experienced sound technician who is familiar with live electronic bands and wireless mic packs will be needed.

Please email your interest at sjloughnane@gmail.com and roc.unimelb@gmail.com

We wonder who got this gig?!

Dear Artists,

We’ve got a job for you…and you might get a little muddy.

We want you to design and decorate a tram-stop. Thanks to our partnership with Yarra Trams, we have been given the blank canvas of two prominent tram-stops on the Swanston St – St Kilda line: the VCA and Parkville campus stops.

This year, sustainability is the bee-knees, the popular kid of the festival that everyone wants to hang out with. We are looking for work that is sustainable, creative and incorporates the Mudfest logo in any way, shape or form. Use the logo as your inspiration – let the kaleidoscope of your imagination run wild. Be quirky, be innovative, be challenging, be inventive, be playful – be Mudfest.

Mudfest - the biennial arts and theatre festival at the University of Melbourne - has grown to be one of the largest student-run festivals in Australia due to the huge range of high quality new, interesting and exciting works that are exhibited each year. Are you Mudfest?

This is your chance to transform a tram-stop into a 3D advertisement for Mudfest. It will be launched at the Opening Night Party and will be visible throughout the entire festival, seen by passengers travelling on over 200 trams. This means huge exposure, not just for the festival but also, for you as an artist.

Of course this is as a result of the sponsorship deal. We wonder what will happen, this is totally going to be an exciting publicity opportunity as well as an artistic canvas.

In University Notices!

Mudfest - Student Arts & Culture Festival, August 18-28: Seeking applications now!

The largest student arts and culture festival in Australia is coming and it's at your uni!

Mudfest is Melbourne Uni's student arts festival that takes place in August every two years - and this year is a Mudfest year!

Established in 1990 by a group of Melbourne Uni creative arts students (including then-student Stephen Armstrong, former Malthouse Theatre executive producer and Sydney Theatre Company artistic associate), Mudfest originally started as a short drama festival. Now, 21 years later, Mudfest has grown to become an industry-recognised cultural event featuring the creative and talented work of Melbourne University student artists from visual arts to theatre, film to creative writing, music to performance installation, and all the inevitable collisions that occur between art forms.

We are looking for submissions from ALL student artists with ideas anywhere between the most simple of ideas to those of the more fully-developed variety.

Download an application form from www.mudfest.org.au, fill out as much as you can, and email it to us ASAP. Applications have been extended an extra three days until this Friday, 3rd June!

Get muddy and get involved!

Peace out,

The Mudteam

Links

http://www.mudfest.org.au/

New Mystery Contributer!

Muddy Leaks we have a new intern working for us. You might be able to guess a little bit of who he might be and where he is from from these photos.

His identiy will soon be revealed. In the mean while, stay tuned and you YES YOU might get the chance to meet him. Out of all the contributers to Muddy Leaks he is surprisingly the least shy!

MUDfest site is live!

The Mudfest 2011 site is live and boy is it a pretty one. Hats off to the designers. Check out the home-page:

Totally Cute! There are links for applications; Tastings; twitter and also fb. So get linked in with both them and us and stay in touch with the latest in MUDfest news.

100 Days Party Callout!

We want your contributions! Photos? T-shirts slogans? Gossip! Leaks?! Opinion. Stories! Poetry… anything. Please like us and  post them on facebook >  Muddy Leaks; Link them into our Twitter or email them to muddyleaks@gmail.com and our team will upload your submissions to the site. All submissions will remain anonymous should you so desire or you can get creative and come up with a code-name. (Yes! It is exactly like primary school).

(Yes we realise the boat neck is a little 80s. But run with it)

MUDfest and the Farrago.

Farrago Edition 3, 2011 was an interesting issue for many reasons. One was the highly amusing horoscopes but there was a lot of more interesting and political stuff as well. Not to be daunted the Editors of Farrago ran a provocative cover and also a feature article about the way forward for the Union/Onion underneath the leader ship of Clemens Unger*. Under the title Westfield Parkville Tim Hall wrote about the the direction the University is taking with the Union. This very interesting and worthwhile article was on page 11.

On page 40 there was an article about about MUDfest: Covered in MUDfest by Vicky Smith (which doesn't seem to be up on the website for some reason - check out the emag. It will be there - page 40). This is not a go at the eds for relegating it to the bag of the magazine - when it really should be in the front news section - instead we would like to draw some parallels between the articles.

For a University Union to be concerning itself to becoming "the Parkville destination...in terms of retail, entertainment and hospitality...a layout like Melbourne Central, you get the drift of what should be there" is a worry. This is Von Westfield on his vision for Onion House. But wait there is more! "I like that Borders principle..." Yes, it is always wise to take business ideas FROM A BANKRUPT COMPANY THAT FORGOT IT WAS A BOOKSHOP. It is clear that the Union is at risk as the article continues of forgetting that "it is a University not a shopping centre." So. We have a mandate (apparent mandate) anyway to move away from being "stuck in the 1970s" and 'moving forward' to to the present. The cynic in the root system of this website asks:

1. How much is the architect being paid to redesign the second floor?
2. How much does this "major make-over" going to cost?
3. Will it actually benefit students and...
4. Why was there no money in the MUSUL budget for MUDfest?

This is where the two articles are linked. On page 11 we have a man with an expansive and expensive vision to transform the Union and 29 pages later there is an article about the same organisation completely annihilating the funding of a student festival. There is of course tough economic times at the moment as we are being constantly reminded by our politicians in the lead up to Federal Budget BUT, the cynic might not accept that there is no money at MUSUL. There is just no money for MUDfest as it is being channelled into other ventures. 

Incidentally factually the report in the Covered in MUDfest article that MUSUL has cut the budget almost in half is incorrect. The money raised for this years festival predominately came from C-CRAG (The Cultural and Community Relations and Advisory Group - hideous sounding acronym but really quite awesome) and ever lovely and supportive Theatre Board. Allegedly MUSUL have not provided any direct funding (as far as Muddy Leaks is aware) but have been assisting with the providing the designs and other materials. Fortunately it finished on a great positive note:

Arts Officer Extroadinaire: "For us it is not about going 'Oh crap, we don't have eighty thousand dollars to spend' it's about producing a festival that's sustainable, raw, and not too loud in terms of expenses - a festival that is about ideas."

Keep up the fight Farrago!

*Henceforth on this site the supreme leader of that darkside of the will be known as Von Westfield, although we are sure he is a lovely chap.

So what is the logo?

We are being teased! We are being teased I say about the design for MUDfest 2011 - however the more observant of you would have noticed the header on the application form - and also this:

The picture that is the profile pic for MUDfest Arts on facebook. Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury (the internets) I think that we may have official leaks here! It's looking very pretty isn't it?