2008, Such is life

Directed by Lynne Counsel, written by Alan Flint, with music by John Bumford.

Alan Flint, a life member of DVS, has had a keen interest in the life of Ned Kelly. He turned that into a musical, performed at Living Faith Uniting Church and Western Heights Uniting Church, Geelong.

Alan Flint’s story and lyrics in Such Is Life! tell the tale of one of Australia’s most famous bushrangers and most loved sons, Ned Kelly, from many perspectives. The 27 songs set to music by John Bumford cover the stories of Ned, his love Kate Lloyd, his family, the poor farming selectors of North East Victoria, colonial society, the police and of the Kelly Gang itself. The musical sharply defines the sacrifices all faced in their ultimate conflict.

Alan says “The story told in the lyrics is one of incredible loyalty, romance and bravery, and humour in the face of hardship. The musical is based on the actual history of early settlement in Victoria, especially the class struggle between the poor farming selectors and the wealthy squatters that led Ned and his friends to become revolutionaries and bushrangers.”

The cast of ‘Such is life’, with Ned Kelly at centre, played by the author Alan Flint