[1]

Also inside
Page 2 The Art of Science
cont...
Page 3 A few words from the
Editor about whats happening
around the traps...
Page 4 Special feature: Watt,
a life!
Page 5 Learning through
history
March 2014
IMTALAP-RAP!
Whats the buzz? Well tell you whats a happening...
STORYTELLING AND THE ART OF SCIENCE
Thoughts on the Australian Science Communicators 2014 National Conference
Michael Mills, Editor, IMTALAP-Rap
Cn Lhe 2nd of lebruary, l packed my
bags, my lab coaL and my Lam 'o
shanLer and headed Lo Lhe humld
cllmes of 8rlsvegas Lo see lf Lhe folk
who underLake and are lnvolved wlLh
scl ence communl cauon knew
anyLhlng abouL we folk who do
museum LheaLre, and Lhe cool sLu
we do. lL was my rsL conference on
sclence communlcauon, buL my
susplclon was LhaL Lhere was much
common ground beLween Lhese Lwo
groups.
1he conference goL underway wlLh a
semlnar uLled 1he SLoryLelllng of
Sclence", feaLurlng such key sclence
communlcaLors as 1lm llannery and
!esse Shore. AL Lhe end of Lhe
sesslon, l 1weeLed...
1ettlfc sessloo! Cteot pooel! lt's
oboot tbe oottouve & bow yoo tell
tbe stoty ot splo tbe yoto. lt's oot tbe
bells & wblstles.
As good a sesslon as lL was, Lhough,
Lhere wasn'L much abouL LhaL Lhlng
we lM1ALAers do... performance!
1hroughouL Lhe nexL Lwo days, Lhe
occaslonal reference was made Lo
sLoryLelllng... uelegaLes clearly had
some undersLandlng, albelL as an
underlylng, background narrauve,
LhaL Lhe shaplng of sLorles and how
Lhey are Lold ls lmporLanL. 1here was
even a sesslon LhaL suggesLed a new
a n d l n n o v a u v e w a y o f
communlcaung sclence: 1he use of
LheaLre and performance!! lndeed,
several delegaLes polnLed Lo havlng
seen 8ernard Caleo ln laraday's
Candle", and whaL a powerful
experlence lL had been. Check ouL
Lhe followlng cllp from Lhe show...
hups://www.youLube.com/waLch?
v=u4[qZke7sq4#L=61
LaLe on Lhe second day, l presenLed a
shorL paper called 1he ArL of Sclence.
ln lL l spoke of Lhe lmporLance of
sLorles, and Lhe role of songs ln
sLoryLelllng. l quoLed Penrl 8abaud, a
for mer dl recLor of L he ar l s
ConservaLolre, who early ln Lhe 20
Lh

CenLury wroLe:
We do not engage with
facts... we engage with
stories
Prof Flint
Image from Faradays Candle,
Bernard Caleo
Professor Flint had the conference delegates stampeding just after
dessert at the Conference dinner!
[2]
Moslcol composluoos, lt sboolJ be temembeteJ, Jo oot
loboblt cettolo cooottles, ot cettolo moseoms, llke polouoqs
ooJ stotoes. 1be Mozott Oolotet ls oot sbot op lo 5olzbotq. l
bove lt lo my pocket.
1he polnL belng LhaL songs by Lhelr very naLure are llule
pockeLs of memory. 1hey are Lhlngs LhaL are able,
someumes Lo our greaL annoyance, Lo embed Lhemselves
lnLo our heads. l oen refer Lo Lhe A8C Song, as a greaL
example where young chlldren are able Lo remember 26
lndlvldual pleces of lnformauon Lhrough Lhe use of a song.
AL Lhls polnL, lL was Lhen o Lo Lhe Conference ulnner...
always a greaL place Lo neLwork and mull... lL was also an
evenlng aL whlch l popped on Lhe aforemenuoned Lam 'o
shanLer, LransmuLed lnLo rof lllnL for a seL of Lunes, and
led Lhe delegaLes on a merry dance, or raLher sLampede,
soon aer desserL. uurlng Lhe performance, Lhe good rof
made Lhe followlng polnL LhaL l Lhlnk oughL Lo be a manLra
for all of us who work ln Lhe eld of sclence
communlcauon, and/or Lhe eld of museum LheaLre
Lhrough sclenuc lnsuLuuons.
lt's oboot tbe stoty & bow tbe stotytellet weoves o
compellloq oottouve. leople Jo oot eoqoqe wltb focts.
1bey eoqoqe wltb stotles.
l Lhlnk rof lllnL provlded a hlgh energy, and pracucal
example of Lhe sLu LhaL we ln Museum 1heaLre do. 1he
ldea LhaL sLoryLelllng ls lmporLanL had been Lhere... lL kepL
popplng up ln llule corners, and wlLh varlous references
buL Lhere had been llule of a pracucal naLure.
And Lhen on Lhe Lhlrd day, lL seemed everyone had a song
Lo slng, or a reference Lo be made abouL slnglng. lL was as
much abouL umlng, l suspecL, LhaL Lhe performance aL Lhe
dlnner was able Lo resonaLe, and lllusLraLe an lmporLanL
polnL. lL ls a LesLamenL Lo Lhe delegaLes LhaL Lhey could see
Lhe polnL, and reecL upon lL.
ln Lhe end, sLorles are aL Lhe core of our consclousness and
provlde Lhe frameworks for lnLerpreLauon, undersLandlng
and meanlng. 1hey provlde vlslon of Lhe posslble and glve
mouvauon. SLorles have been a parL of Lhe human
condluon slnce we worked ouL how Lo speak, Lo Lell sLorles
and slng. lL ls how we relaLe Lo one anoLher, and how we
relaLe Lo Lhe ancesLors who came before us, and Lhe
descendanLs who wlll follow.
lL was lnsLrucuve LhaL boLh Lhe museum LheaLre and
sclence communlcauon communlues boLh undersLand Lhe
lmporLance of greaL sLorles, greaL songs and quallLy
performance ln whaL we do. 1he dlerence wlLh Lhe Lwo
communlues ls LhaL for we who work LheaLre, LhaL's
essenually whaL we do. lor Lhose who work ln sclence
communlcauon, lL ls a parL of whaL Lhey do... l suspecL, as
Lhe evldence conunues Lo demonsLraLe lL's value, Lhe role
of performance ln sclence communlcauon wlll become
lncreaslngly lmporLanL.
My auendance aL Lhe conference was funded Lhrough Lhe
8arbara Pardy lnsuLuLe, unlSA where l am an Ad[uncL
8esearch AssoclaLe, and Peaps Cood roducuons aL whlch l
am Creauve ulrecLor.
Tim Flannery speaking at
the opening seminar of the
conference.

Storytelling and the Art of Science ...Cont
IMTALAP-Rap March 2014 http://www.imtalasiapacic.org
Western Australian delegates continued
stampeding well into the night!
[3]
1hls ls Lhe second edluon of Lhe
lM1ALA-8ap newsleuer CuarLerly
8ulleun Magazlne !ournal SupplemenL
newsleuer. Many Lhanks Lo Lhose who
gave us loLs of posluve feedback for
Lhe rsL edluon! l'm raLher hopeful
LhaL Lhls suggesLs some of you read lL,
whlch ls always a nlce bonus! AL Lhe
ume of wrlung, we're currenLly
l ookl ng Loward Lhe Museum's
AusLralla 2014 Conference and Lhe
posslblllLy LhaL we'll conunue Lhe
dlscusslon amongsL delegaLes, of Lhe
lmporLance of Museum 1heaLre.
We've had a preuy cool ldea for
runnl ng a seml nar Lhl s year. . .
Somewhere raLher fesuve. lf you eLch
a llule pencll mark ln your dlarles for
CcLober 17Lh and perhaps Lhe 18Lh
for some exLra acuvlues, l'd suggesL
LhaL's a mlghLy ne ldea! More deLalls
wlll be forLhcomlng ln Lhe fullness of
ume!!
now ls also Lhe ume when we
wade Lhrough Lhe process of arm
Lwlsung, ca[ollng, LhreaLenlng, and eye
poklng where requlred, Lo ensure
people elLher sLay on, or [oln Lhe
lM1ALA Commluee! We'll have full
deLalls of who Lhe lucky lads and
ladeues are ln our nexL edluon.
Whats on these coming school
holidays!
1he AusLrallan Museum ln Sydney
conunues lL's successful exhlbluon
1yrannosaurs: MeeL Lhe lamlly. 1hls
Aprll, however, sees LhaL slnglng
palaeo rof lllnL make hls way Lo
Sydney for an all new show, wlLh some
greaL new songs, and a raLher nlce
anlmaLed vldeo backdrop. Whlle Lhe
s how f oc us es on L he f a ml l y
Lyrannosaur, don'L be surprlsed lf Lhe
good rof lsn'L able Lo draw auenuon
Lo a posslble AusLrallan connecuon.
ueLalls are avallable here... hup://
ausLral l anmuseum. neL. au/evenL/
School-Pollday-rogram
lor Lhe buddlng musos amongsL
you, head Lo Lhe nauonal Museum of
AusLralla ln Canberra and paruclpaLe
l n L h e M u s e u m M a e s L r o s
programme... Maklng your own
lnsLrumenL ln a museum, and Lhen
playlng lL! ?ep... l Lhlnk LhaL classles
as performance ln museums, mosL
denlLely. hup://www.nma.gov.au/
e n g a g e - l e a r n / f a m l l l e s /
dlscovery_space
Whlle ln Canberra, Lhe essenual
vlslLor experlence, especlally for Lhose
wlLh famllles, ls of course, CuesLacon.
1hls year, Lhe good folk Lhere
celebraLe 23 years of lnsplrauon, and l
couldn'L [usL plck one Lhlng Lo do
Lhere, as Lhere's so much Lo do! So,
here's a llnk Lo Lhelr maln page...
Check l L ouL , and en[ oy L he
a d v e n L u r e . . . h u p : / /
www.quesLacon.edu.au/ouLreach/
programs
Meanwhile, at the Powerhouse...
!"#$ &'()"
S a L u r d a y 1 2 Ap r l l , 2 . 0 0 p m,
owerhouse Museum, Sydney
1he owerhouse ls celebraung Lhe
lnLernauonal uay of Puman Space
lllghL (?url's nlghL) wlLh a unlque
muslcal performance. ltom tbet ls a
movlng experlence of vlsual lmages
Laken from a sLar's perspecuve,
accompanled by a haunungly beauuful
soundscape Laklng us on a [ourney
a r o u n d e a r L h . l n s p l r e d b y
phoLographl c l mages Laken by
Commander Chrls Padeld from Lhe
lnLernauonal Space SLauon, planlsL
Andrea keller has composed an
eLhereal accompanlmenL Lo Lhls eplc
voyage. lmLalap8ap readers are
welcome Lo auend aL unlverslLy SLa
prlces. lor more lnformauon and
b o o k l n g s v l s l L : h u p : / /
www.powerhousemuseum.com/Lalks/
space.php
Wherever you go, and whaLever
you do Lhere, be a parL of Lhe sLory!
Michael Mills
Editor
A WORD IN YOUR EAR...
Thoughts, ponderings and odds and ends, found on the
Editors desk, and in his head!
Keep us updated...
Please help us update our
database. Send us your name,
role, institution, phone number
and email address to...
info@imtalasiapacic.org
Ask to join our Facebook group
for regular updates and
conversations...
https://www.facebook.com/
groups/IMTALAP/
Check out our website at...
http://www.imtalasiapacic.org
IMTALAP-RAP
Send articles and items with
colour photos to...
michael@heapsgood.com.au
Word limit is 900 words, unless
pre-arranged with the Editor
Colour piccs, please!
[4]
ln Lhe rsL ln a serles of arucles, we
wanLed Lo celebraLe Lhe work of Lhe
people who make lM1ALA... 1he
pracuuoners aL Lhe hearL of whaL we
do, who brlng such passlon Lo Lhelr
work, and ln so dolng, lnsplre oLhers.
ln our rsL ouung, l asked aLrlck Wau,
Manager 8urke Museum & PlsLorlc
reclncL, lndlgo Shlre Councll a serles
of quesuons. 1hese, ln hls own
unedlLed words, are hls answers!
Whlle Lhey'll glve you some lnslghL
lnLo aLrlck hlmself, Lhey also provlde
an lnLeresung lnslghL lnLo Lhe world of
museum LheaLre Lhrough Lhe eyes of
someone wlLh a greaL passlon for lL.
!"#$ #&' ()*& +&,$ #-. /#0)*&1$'
2'2)&1', )/ 3)1-3 $) # 4*,'*2 #, #
5"16.7 !"#$ .1. ()* 618' #9)*$ 1$ $"'
2),$7
Lveryone has sLrong early chlldhood
memorles and one of mlne ls vlslung
Lhe Melbourne Museum when lL was
on SwansLon SLreeL. lL was a labyrlnLh
and l was really scared of gemng losL
ln Lhere, LhaL was my rsL lmpresslon,
buL noL my favourlLe. l Lhlnk some
museums can sull be overwhelmlng Lo
young chlldren - sensory overloads.
1he vlnLage car dlsplay was preuy
lmpresslve and all Lhe enormous
globes and sLued anlmals, buL l don'L
remember much else.
!"'- ()* :'&' # 5"16.; :#, $"'&'
,)2'$"1-3 ()* :#-$'. $) 9' :"'-
()* <3&': *=<; #-. "): .)', $"#$
5)2=#&' :1$" :"#$ ()* -): .)7
Would you belleve l wanLed Lo be a
curaLor? l grew up on a farm and we
had a spare house whlch l Lurned lnLo
a museum. We lled lL wlLh found
Aborlglnal sLones, ceramlc vlnegar [ars,
old guns, bayoneLs from Lhe 8oer war
and Lhe usual collecuon of lrons. My
broLher helped me - we charged 20
cenLs enLry and never made a cenL!
Patrick shining a light on the
importance of museum theatre at
Burke Museum!
!"#$ 1 , ()*& /#0)*&1 $' 01 ,1 $)&
'>='&1'-5' 1- # 4*,'*2 #, '1$"'& #-
#.*6$ )& # 5"16.; #-. :"(7
1he rsL ume l walked lnLo 8un[llaka,
noL long aer lL rsL opened, a young
man Lhrew a possum-skln ball aL me. l
caughL lL and he asked me Lo klck lL
back. lL seemed sacrlleglous, buL he
was really keen Lo engage me ln some
Lype of dlalogue. 1he young man,
Wllllam, was a cusLomer servlce omcer
and we had a greaL conversauon abouL
Lhe lmages and ob[ecLs around us.
Can l be lndulgenL and Lell you abouL a
show l wroLe for acLor !ack uan? 1he
show was ad[acenL Lo !ack 8rabham's
raclng car aL Lhe nauonal SporLs
Museum, lL was called Motot kocloq -
lt's tbe llts! !ackle lreddo-Caldo had
losL hls plL crew for hls pedal-lerrarl
and had Lo recrulL audlence members
Lo help hlm. 1he audlence [usL goL lL
and lL really enhanced Lhe exhlblL. LxlL
surveys sald Lhls was Lhe besL Lhlng
Lhe vlslLors had seen.
!"#$ 1, 1$ #9)*$ :)&81-3 :1$"
='&/)&2#-5' 1- 5*6$*&#6 1-,?$*?)-,
$"#$ :)&8, /)& ()*7 !"( $"' =#,,1)-7
!"#$ 3'$, ()* )*$ )/ 9'. $) 3'$ ()*
$) 3) $) :)&8 '#5" .#(7
l now manage a museum and l have a
greaL Leam around me - Lhey are
l n L e l l l g e n L , p a s s l o n a L e a n d
enLhuslasuc. We have Lhe besL
collecuons and loLs of ldeas - how
could you noL geL ouL of bed! As far as
performance goes we are worklng on a
few ldeas - we have one show we do
durlng holldays and for schools buL l
wanL Lo bulld on LhaL.
What is your proudest achievement
in working in a cultural institution?
The Coates Cube was under the
auspices of Scienceworks and Coates
Hire. I got to design a 20m3 Cube
(tautology?) outside theatre in which
we built a stage incorporating a 15m
scissor lift and I developed a show
that had packed audiences every hour
for the whole of the Commonwealth
Games in Melbourne. It was in the
heart of Birrarung Marr in the heart of
Melbourne. Again I had a great team
to perform with and we had a lot of
fun. I was really lucky to have been
asked to work on such a great project
Watt, a life: Patrick Watt
The life and adventures of a passionate museum theatre practitioner...
IMTALAP-Rap March 2014 http://www.imtalasiapacic.org
[5]
What remains undone in your
professional career? Is there one
big thing you'd like to see done in
the sector?
I honestly believe we are building
disconnects by using technology in
museums. Objects have stories and
we need to train people to transfer
those stories to people - it can be
through oor staff engaging with
visitors, through meaningful museum
theatre or just good interpretation.
We are losing the art of story telling
by using I Pods, I Pads and other
electro-enticers. Every visitor will tell
you the best part of their visit had
something to do with another person
- not a gadget - every time!
Image of Jack Dan as Jackie Freddo
Caldo
Watt, a life... continued!
IMTALAP-Rap March 2014 http://www.imtalasiapacic.org
Patrick surrounded by part of the fabulous taxidermy collection at
Burke Museum
Learning through History at
Sovereign Hill
Soverelgn Plll Museums Assoclauon and Lhe Soverelgn Plll
School are hosung Lhe 16
Lh
Symposlum of Lhe
lnLernauonal neLwork of School PerlLage aL Soverelgn Plll
ln 8allaraL on March 23
Lh
2013.
1he Lheme of Lhe Symposlum ls Learnlng 1hrough
PlsLory" and Lhe keynoLe speaker ls rofessor Ceorey
8lalney. 1he program wlll enLall workshops on varlous
Loplcs such as Lhe eecuveness of role play, Lhe hlsLory of
educauon from a unlverslLy perspecuve, Lhe changlng role
of Lhe hlsLory Leacher, museums-how do we presenL? And
how do we lobby for money.
As well as Lhe workshops Lhere wlll ume allocaLed Lo
explore Lhe Soverelgn Plll Schools and Lhe many acuvlues
LhaL conLrlbuLe Lo Lhe sLudenLs' vlslL.
Check ouL Lhe webslLe for Lhe conference
www.lasmc2013.com.au
Mlchael Ward
rlnclpal, Soverelgn Plll School
[6]
If you have something to say, something
to share, something youre pondering
over, the deadlines for the next few
editions of IMTALAP-Rap are...
May 20th 2014
August 20th 2014
November 20th 2014
Word limit 900 words.
Include piccs.
All content to be sent to the Editor,
Michael Mills at
michael@heapsgood.com.au
PUT IT IN YOUR DIARY
IMTALAP-Rap March 2014 http://www.imtalasiapacic.org
MA
2014
Dont just sit there, get involved!
Theres still time to pack your bags and head across
to Tassie for this years MA Conference. Follow the link
to the Conference website...
http://www.ma2014.org.au/index.asp?
IntCatId=14
1wo ltleoJs
ltoJocuoos, a
chlldren's museum
LheaLre company, are
exclLed Lo announce
one of Lhelr laLesL
pro[ecLs, a
collaborauon wlLh Lhe
Albury Llbrary
Museum and 1he
8onegllla MlgranL CenLre.
1he pro[ecL has arlsen from a granL awarded Lo Lhe
Albury Llbrary Museum and Lhe company dlrecLors aL
1wo ltleoJs ltoJocuoos, Amanda earce and !ade
1homson, are worklng closely wlLh Lhe museum and
8onegllla Lo develop, produce, and perform a fun-lled
educauonal play abouL Lhe 8onegllla MlgranL Lxperlence.
1he resulung producuon wlll be performed aL 1he
8onegllla MlgranL CenLre and as parL of 1he Albury
Llbrary Museum's upcomlng exhlbluon 'Lmporlum',
whlch explores Lhe role of Lhe 1930's woman, focuslng
on mlgranL sLorles and experlences.
1wo lrlends roducuons wlll also be runnlng a relaLed
workshop aL Lhe nexL keeploq lt keol conference ln
Albury on 1hursday 21sL AugusL.
WlLh Lhe exhlbluon and performance ln !uly, Amanda
and !ade are currenLly aL Lhe researchlng and wrlung
sLage, dlscoverlng Lhe unlque and fasclnaung sLorles Lhe
8onegllla resldenLs all experlenced. Cnce Lhe lnformauon
has been collaLed and Lhe scrlpL nallsed, Lhe producuon
and rehearsal sLage beglns before nally belng able Lo
brlng Lhese capuvaung sLorles Lo llfe ln boLh 8onegllla
and Lhe Albury Llbrary Museum.
Two Friends embark on a new adventure...
Amanda Pearce, Two Friends Productions