Growing up in country NSW, Joanne Trentini first tread the boards as a professional actress in Edinburgh after winning a travelling scholarship for acting in 2001. She returned to Australia hungry for more, travelling and performing throughout Australia for the next six years before settling in Melbourne to attend the Victorian College of the Arts. Since graduating in 2007 she has worked extensively in the local industry in both television and theatre.
Recent credits include Miss Phryne Fisher’s Murder Mysteries (ABC), Offspring (Channel 10), RUSH (Channel 10) and Winners & Losers (Channel 7). Recent stage credits include Pains of Youth (The Artisan Collective/Malthouse Theatre), Stoning Mary (Red Stitch, The Arts Centre) and Acts of Deceit (Dirty, Pretty Theatre, La Mama).
In 2010 she was accepted into the Masters of Acting at the Actors Studio in New York. Deferring this amazing opportunity to instead stay in Australia and start her own production company; The Other One. A company which aims to create fusion theatre for non-traditional theatre audiences.
In 2012 she is proud to announce the company’s premiere performance in association with Dallape Chant and winnifred effect, her first full length play; mothersmilk at fortyfive downstairs in Melbourne.
What did you want to be when you grew up?
I grew up in country NSW with eight brothers and sisters. So what I wanted to be when I grew up changed pretty much every day depending on what my older brothers and sisters wanted to be. I’m a real team player!
When did you know you would work in the arts?
There are two distinct moments.
The first is when I realised I wanted to be a ‘star’. I must’ve been about three or four and my pop took myself and my little sister to see the film Benji. I remember one scene where Benji almost fell off a cliff and I distinctly remember thinking “Wow, I want to have adventures like that!” But obviously not as a dog, as a girl.
And the second was when I realised I wanted to be in the arts. Very early in my career I had the opportunity to work with an amazing director Naomi Edwards. She showed me that theatre can be a place of change, a forum for discussion and expression of the needs and cares of a community. I knew that I wanted to make theatre about diversity and inclusion, not exclusivity and elitism.
How would you describe your work to a complete stranger?
Fusion theatre about community issues, for non-traditional audiences
How hard is it to be authentic in the arts nowadays?
I believe authenticity comes down to the individual artist and how confident they are that they have something important to say. However, it does require you to have complete faith in yourself and your artistic practice, which can be very difficult, and probably the reason why I have hesitated in doing my own work up till now!
If you know what you are doing and why you are doing it, then you will be true to the story, the message and your art. However, if you try to impress others with your work you run the risk of pursuing a practice that is inauthentic and most probably won’t end up pleasing anyone, least of all yourself.
Is there a mission to your work?
Yes, The Other One Productions aims to make theatre that is created by the community for the community. We want to make theatre a forum for discussion again, telling stories that need to be told.
What’s your background – are there studies that prepare you for this?
I’ve done five years of formal study. I don’t know whether my studies have prepared me for what I want to do with my work, but they have definitely shaped me. I believe that life is the classroom, so I encourage everyone to go out and live, because it’s those experiences that make you who you are, not anything you get taught by someone else.
What’s the first thing career related you usually do each day?
I wake up and kiss my husband. He encourages me to be the best I can be, and has taught me that there is no such thing as failure as long as you try. This makes me a brave and bold artist, willing to make mistakes, and that makes me feel good.
Can you describe an “average” working day for you?
I work full time, so my ‘rent paying job’ runs 8am to 5.30pm, then I’m off to rehearsals, usually till 9pm, then home to learn lines. Then up again at 6.30am and do it all over again.
What else do you do to pay the bills?
I’m a Personal Assistant.
What’s the one thing – piece of equipment, toy, security blanket, – you can’t work without?
A sense of adventure.
What gets you fired up?
In a positive way; Hearing people share their experiences with each other. In a negative way; Artistic Elitism
Who in the industry most inspires you?
Toni Collette. I’ve never met her so of course, and media being what it is, you can never truly know someone from the publicity. But she comes across as really honest and down to earth, and a big family person, which I am. When you watch her it feels like she shares a part of herself with you which I find really generous. She’s naturally beautiful but not afraid to look really normal when she needs to and I think it’s so important for an audience, especially in today’s appearance obsessed society. I believe she is one of the finest talents to come out of Australia.
What in the industry do you despair about?
The actor as a model; of morality, of perfection, of anything other than humanity and all its frailty.
What is the best thing about your job?
The people.
What’s the worst?
The lack of proper pay.
What are the top three skills you need in this industry?
1. Flexibility
2. A sense of adventure
3. A good sense of humor!
What advice would you give anyone looking to break into the field?
I’m an unpaid independent artist so there’s no real breaking in to my field, anyone can do it! But I would hope that people wanting to do independent theatre are doing it because they love it and have something to say.
How do you know when you missed the mark?
When I feel like I’m being wanky.
Which of the below phrases best suits your career development to date and why?
a. “The road to success is always under construction. ”
b. “Opportunity dances with those who are already on the dance floor.”
c. “Success is best measured by how far you’ve come with the talents you’ve been given. ”
d. “No one can cheat you out of ultimate success but yourself.”
A. What success meant to me a year ago is so different to what it is today. I hope that it will keep changing too, because to me, it demonstrates that I’m growing and evolving as a reflection of a constant engagement with myself and my community.
When do you know you’ve made it?
When your smiles out number your frowns.
The Other One Productions proudly present the premiere season of
mothersmilk
Written by Joanne Trentini
She is everything that no one wants to be…
Kitty is an ordinary woman living an extraordinarily complicated life. An early morning visit instigates a series of choices; leading her on a journey to discover a side of herself she doesn’t want to know. Struggling with the consequences, Kitty believes one thing – she is everything that no one wants to be.
The premiere of a new Australian work, mothersmilk is a powerful piece of fusion theatre combining live music and multimedia, with traditional practices. Running from 31 October to 11 November at fortyfivedownstairs, mothersmilk is an original work by Joanne Trentini, based on her real life experiences.
31 October – 11 November
Wed – Sat 8pm, Sat and Sun 5pm
Ticketing: $32 Full, $27 Concession and Grps 6+
Bookings: 03 9662 9966 or online at www.fortyfivedownstairs.com
fortyfivedownstairs: 45 Flinders Lane, Melbourne City
www.mothersmilktheshow.com
