A reading from the international bestseller The Best of Adam Sharp by author Graeme Simsion (The Rosie Project, The Glass House), with music performed by Pete Walsh.
Adam Sharp is a novel with a soundtrack – songs the reader might hear in their head as they read. In this show, Graeme and Pete will take you closer to Graeme’s vision of bringing together story and songs.
Graeme will read selected passages to tell the story of Adam, whose former lover turns up out of the blue, uninvited. It’s a story of love – of both the romantic and the less-romantic kind – of choices and of redemption. A film is currently in development with Toni Collette’s Vocab Films and New Sparta in the UK.
Pete will play the songs – standards and rarities largely from the 1960s and 70s. Fans of Bob Dylan, the Beatles, Joni Mitchell and Jackson Browne will find their songs set in a new context.
Graeme’s profits will go to Schizy Inc supporting artists with diverse mental health.
And some FAQ’s below.
Who is Pete Walsh?
Back in 1970 the Hoadley’s Battle of the Sounds was the premier showcase for local music. Zoot, featuring Rick Springfield, Darryl Cotton and Beeb Birtles were unbackable favourites to win the Victorian final. Graeme remembers: from nowhere, an unknown band toppled them. Nova Express, fronted by Linda George, with PETE WALSH on keyboards.
Fresh from that triumph to this year’s fringe festival.
Well fresh-ish. Along the way he’s played a lot of music and done a bit of consulting with Graeme – and with other leading consultancies. He was a judges’ pick for his Beatles and Bacharach performance at the 2023 Fringe. There will be no Bacharach in the Adam Sharp performance. (That’s what friends are for.)
What night should I book?
Now we’re talking. Graeme has various cohorts of friends and former colleagues, by virtue of being quite old. So we’ve nominated a couple of nights for specific groups if you want to catch up with people from your past or present life.
If you’re a writer and / or an RMIT writing graduate or teacher, we’re suggesting opening night, Tuesday 13. If you’re a former business / IT colleague or client (e.g. from Simsion Bowles), then Wednesday 14th October is the date, though we have a few coming Friday as well. If you want to party, then obviously the last night, Sunday 18th: this’ll be the last show of the festival. If you’re tight for cash, Wednesday gets you a discount – or you can get the same by booking for six. Mental health workers and doctors in general seem to be evenly spread, but note that Prof Anne Buist AO (otherwise known as Graeme’s partner, Anne) plans to be there Tues, Wed, Fri, Sat.
Am I going to enjoy this?
If you enjoy book events, well it’s a bit more than that. If you enjoy going to a piano bar or pub and listening to music, it’s a bit more than that too. If you like a full-on staged musical, it’s less than that, but it’s a lot cheaper… and you may like the story and music more.
Graeme first had the experience of telling a story by reading selected passages in Germany, on his Rosie Project tour. The Germans seemed to enjoy it. But the music will add another dimension. And Wheat Wine and Whiskey is an authentic setting – the first part of the story is set in Collingwood, much of it in a bar.
So it comes down whether you’ll like the story (of love lost and found again) and the music (largely 60s and 70s with the occasional ring-in). If you hate Jackson Browne with a passion, maybe not for you. There’s quite a bit of sex in the book, but it will be treated with taste and subtlety in line with the ‘family friendly’ billing.
Graeme and Pete gave it a trial run in France and…everybody seemed to have fun, even the person moved to tears.
