A new musical ‘Hawke’ is being staged this week in Melbourne delving into one of Australia’s most successful, charismatic and loved prime ministers, and the musical has a Hellenic heart.
Bob Hawke, Australia’s 23rd prime minister, is considered one of the nation’s most successful leaders. The Labor prime minister, who died in 2019 at the age of 89, served from 1983 to 1991. Now, his life has been brought to the stage in a musical written by Paul Kauffman, directed by Denny Lawrence, with music composed by David Pereira.
Kauffman spent much time in politics and an adviser, alongside both Labor and Liberal leaders.
“I spent 30 years, off and on, observing politicians in Canberra. I saw and understood their strengths, but I also saw their darker sides. I think it’s important Australians get a picture of the whole man that was Hawke,” Kauffman tells Neos Kosmos.
Hawke transformed Australia from a drifting economy into a globally connected nation. He wore his heart on his sleeve and often showed emotion publicly. Hawke and his Treasurer, Paul Keating, reshaped the economy and social systems — introducing Medicare, floating the Australian dollar, and deregulating the financial sector.
However, Hawke was also known for his love of drink and his charm with women — a reputation that followed him well before politics.
Heaven or Hell
The musical is set in an imagined afterlife, says Kauffman, “There Hawke meets both his wives, Hazel Hawke his first wife and Blanche d’Alpuget his the second wife and biographer, as well as a bishop, who must decide whether they will all spend eternity in heaven or hell.”
Kauffman could not contain his excitement about the “sublime original music written by one of Australia’s greatest composers, David Pereira.”
“We’ve got brilliant performers like Ana Mitsikas, who has starred in many musical productions and recently appeared in My Brilliant Career at the Melbourne Theatre Company, and Chelsea Plumley, a five-time Green Room Award nominee.”
Peter Houghton, who plays Hawke, has carved out a major career across Australia’s main stages, he has performed Macbeth, Sweet Bird of Youth, The Trial and Travesties, Tartuffe, Tear From A Glass Eye and much more, at the Melbourne Theatre Company, Sydney Theatre Company and Malthouse Theatre,.
A world first – in Greek
Kauffman says that his musical includes “a world-first — a Greek baptism song sung by Chelsea Plumley, with music by David Pereira, from Ephesians 5:14 in Greek.”
“διὸ λέγει· ἔγειρε, ὁ καθεύδων, καὶ ἀνάστα ἐκ τῶν νεκρῶν, καὶ ἐπιφαύσει σοι ὁ Χριστός”
(dio legei: egeire, ho katheudōn, kai anasta ek tōn nekrōn, kai epipha usei soi ho Christos).
“It is a Greek song from the New Testament that has never been set to music before. It was the song Saint Paul used when baptising Christians around the Mediterranean in 61 AD.”
Paul — once Saul, a hunter of Christians — changed his life on the road to Damascus, converting to Christianity and becoming one of the greatest propagandists of all time, ensuring Christianity spread across the Roman Empire.
Just as Saint Paul transformed himself, Hawke was a master of shaping his public image. He was a constant presence on television, welcomed journalists into his home for informal chats, and cultivated an accessibility that made him a household name.
When Australia won the 1983 America’s Cup, he captured the mood with one of his most memorable lines, “Any boss who sacks anyone for not turning up today is a bum.”
Hawke’s broad Australian accent reflected his roots. Born in Bordertown, South Australia, to Clement Hawke, a Congregationalist minister and Edith Lee, a schoolteacher, he won a Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford in 1953.
“His parents taught Hawke how to behave and gave him what you might call a Christian upbringing — but Hawke learned all that and began to do everything opposite to it,” says Kauffman. “There is always the image and the reality.”
Asked if he was referring to Hawke’s well-known dalliances while married, Kauffman replied, “Something like that.”
“It’s called narcissism — he saw himself as God’s gift to women,” he adds.
“Ordinary Australians should know about politics, and I’ve tried to put all of that into this 80-minute play, with original music, including a stunning Greek song. It’s an important piece, because Saint Paul’s story and the song connect history, faith, and transformation in a way few people realise.”
The big question is will Bob Hawke be admitted to Heaven or sent to Hell?
“Well you’ll have to buy a ticket and find out” laughs Kauffman.
Venue: Chapel Off Chapel – The Chapel, 12 Little Chapel St, Prahran, 3181
Dates: 9 to 12 October
Tickets: Book here
