by Noni Kuhner

When it comes to nightlife, many think the city centre is the only option in Canberra, especially for live music. One of the venues that has fostered that inner city scene is Smith’s Alternative, which has garnered a reputation as one of the best locations to see local, national and international artists.

While you might think that might be enough for the team at Smith’s when approached by Belco Arts about the possibility of a collaboration, owner-operators Nigel McRae and Beth Tully jumped at the chance.

A Match Made in Heaven

Belco Arts’ Production and Venue Hire Manager, Anni Doyle Wawrzynczak, says that the Smith’s @ Belco gigs are a heavenly match that benefits the entire community. “When we were chatting about it, Nigel told me: Collaboration amongst the arts community is the accelerant that makes it go boom,” Anni recalls. “This project is all about collaboration. It’s about bringing more music to Canberra. It’s about creating new opportunities for local artists to work with seasoned professionals.

“And it’s really about providing an alternative live music experience and diversifying the offerings already available in Canberra. It’s a way to further pump up the North Canberra music scene.”

The bringing of live music to the suburbs is already having a considerable impact, with plenty of big names having already taken to the stage and plenty more to come.

“We’ve already had the extraordinary Daniel Champagne in the theatre in November, and he was supported by our local Alec Randolph. There’s Tim Rogers in a solo show, supported by Cathy Diver…” Anni says before rattling off all those yet to come:

“And then in March, we’ve got the Gadflys; in April, we’ve got Charm of Finches. In May, we’ve got Shortis and Simpson doing Under The Influence with Fred Smith… And then in June, we’ve got the amazing master guitarist, Paco Lara, an Andalusian guitar master player. Excitingly, he will be working with his troupe and some locals.”

This program is about quality and variety in its acts, bringing an experience to the Belconnen Arts Centre that would otherwise likely be kept within Civic’s limits. Still, that transference of culture to Belconnen has been Anni’s passion since she took up the position. Getting Nigel involved was the first item on her to-do list.

“I started here last year, and we’d been talking about wanting to have a live music program in our fabulous theatre,” she enthuses. “And I went to Monika McInerney – our Artistic Director – and said, Look, I’d really love to collaborate with Nigel from Smiths.

“She said she’d always wanted to work with Nigel. So Nigel and I met to chat, and off we went.”

And when did it come to the financial aspect of the program? Belco Arts wanted to make a big splash with the line-up of events, which meant it needed to be more than a once-off.

“We decided on six shows over six months, and we needed to find a way to fund that,” Anni explains. “So Monica found the Live Music Australia grant, and we made an application. The application was successful [which is] so marvellous.

“It means that once we finish these six months of funded shows, our plan is to keep them going.”

The process is a well-oiled machine driven by experience, enthusiasm, and a strong desire to succeed in the long term.

“The way it’s working is Nigel is acting as the convener of all the acts. He’s had – I don’t know – maybe it’s 30 years of experience in really understanding what Canberra audiences want, and he’s completely hooked to the Australian live music scene.

“So Nigel and I talk about who we’d like to have, and then Nigel puts together those acts and chooses the support to match, so that they work together beautifully. And then I manage that process [from there],” Anni explains.

“It’s all about giving the audiences a terrific time. “

The resounding success the events have seen so far seems a testament to the quality of that idea.

“We had fantastic audiences for the first one, and Tim [sold] very quickly. And we’re anticipating full houses for the full run, which is wonderful for the artists,” she says glowingly.

It seems the fuse has been lit; now we, the lucky audience, can see it go ‘boom’.

Information and tickets for all the Smiths@Belco gigs can be found at belcoarts.com.au.