Bringing to life the memories of women who served at Fort Scratchley during WW11.

Manning the Fort (2017) was a successful site-specific, participatory performance work bringing to life hidden aspects of Newcastle’s history. The outdoor theatrical event activated key historical tourism site Fort Scratchley with a variety of visually impressive theatrical performances inspired by the period during WWII when members of the Australian Women’s Army Service (AWAS) “manned” Fort Scratchley.

“We did a good job, the girls, we really did. Everyone thought we were marvellous, the way we coped. It’s amazing what you can do, even if you’ve never had any training. I thought when I came back things would be different. But you know what men are like, they didn’t even want women taking their jobs, even though we did the jobs better than the men did half the time. I was a Sergeant at Fort Scratchley, but after the war I went home, and life went on just the same. But I was a Gun-Sergeant. If I’d been able to go to Canberra for Officer Training, I’d have had quite a high rank by now.”
– Dorothy MacDonnell (nee Tutt), interviewed by director Amy Hardingham, 2015

Manning the Fort was delivered in collaboration with Flipside Youth Dance and the Fort Scratchley Historical Society. The show was the result of 18 months of research and writing conducted by Amy Hardingham, and 6 months of intensive development and rehearsal involving 50 performers aged 8-26 years, 14 professional artists and technicians; including 4 directors, 3 choreographers, 3 composers, and 2 costume designers (with a total of 65 costumes)!

Manning the Fort received Best Sound Design (Huw Jones), Best Lighting Design (Lyndon Buckley), and Excellence by a Choreographer (Cadi McCarthy and Marnie Palomares from Catapult Dance / Flipside Youth Dance) in the 2016 CONDA Awards.