A Chat with Phil Cummings: Journeying from Page to Stage with ’Space Race’
Author Phil Cumming’s ‘Touch the Moon’ journey from the page to the stage ’Space Race’… Travel back in time to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing as the ASO brings to life award-winning author Phil Cummings’ new book with music composed by Glyn Lehmann. When the Soviet Union’s Sputnik 1 became the first satellite to orbit the Earth – the race was on! Caught by surprise the US was determined to stay in the race. As the world watched on in fascination, there were also many unforgettable personal moments. Experience the drama and excitement of this incredible time and, amidst it all, relive Phil’s own heart-warming childhood recollection of 21 July 1969. We chat to Phil about his inspirations and the upcoming performance: Apart from the moon landing itself what inspired you to want to retell the Moon Landing story as a children’s picture book. Can you recall what you were doing on the day of the moon landing? (Extract taken from book) July 21 2019 will mark the fiftieth anniversary of the moon landing. The first step was taken at 12.56pm Australian Eastern Standard Time on Monday July 21 1969. I remember very clearly the day man landed on the moon, as many people around my age do. I was living in a country town called Peterborough 260 kilometres north of Adelaide, in South Australia. It was a bitterly cold day and just as Neil Armstrong was preparing to walk down the ladder and place his foot on the moon, something else incredible was happening outside my window. The wind dropped and my world was suddenly gripped by an unnerving stillness. Then, to my utter amazement, soft gentle snow began to fall. It fell like feathers shaken free from a pillow and floated down without a breath of wind. The only other snow I had ever seen there – and ever did see in all the years I lived there – could hardly be called snow, because it melted before it hit the ground. This particular fall, however, was thick. It was steady, it was gentle, and for a child of eleven, it was magical. And because it was such an incredibly rare event, I found it very difficult to decide whether to stay inside and watch man walk on the moon, or go outside and play in the snow. In the end, I did both. As I watched Neil Armstrong take that step, the snow continued to fall and lay a thick white blanket, about 15 – 20 centimetres thick. It continued to fall long enough for me to be able to finish watching Neil and then go outside, build a snowman, throw a snowball, and leave footprints in the snow just like the footprints Neil Armstrong was leaving for the moon. I have written this piece, my strongest recollections of that day in the hope that others will share with children their experiences and memories, and encourage children to ponder and be excited by the endless possibilities in their future. Just as everyone was, particularly children, back in 1969. Describe the journey of how your book ’Touch the Moon’ was transformed from the page to the stage in ‘Space Race’? My co-collaborator in this project is my dear friend, renowned arranger and composer, Glyn Lehmann. It was when Glyn and I were chatting about projects we were undertaking and setting a writing and production schedule that this first came up. When I was working on the first drafts of ‘Touch the Moon’ I had also written a song – I always write a song when working on a book; it is part of my creative process. I never share the songs with anyone though but on this occasion I did. I played the song, which is called Cold July Day, to Glyn and it captured his imagination. We have actually recorded it and it has been released under our ‘band’ name The Lunar Sea. From there Glyn had the idea to create something bigger. So as the process evolved, I took to writing the lyrics for five more songs that tracked the events and excitement of the Space Race in the sixties. Glyn took the lyrics and created this incredible music. These five songs together with Cold July Day are now the ‘Space Race’ song cycle that will be performed with the Orchestra and the Young Adelaide Voices – I still can’t believe it! Describe your anticipation in seeing your story Touch the Moon take from the page to the stage? This is very difficult for me to put in words to be honest; A strange thing to say perhaps as a writer but I find myself turning to clichés – it is a dream come true. One of the most overwhelming things is that there are so many strands to this ‘story’. This is not only about the book; it is my childhood. It is the bringing to life – in story, song, image and music – of a strong memory of an incredible time in my life. When put in those terms, all I can see is how incredibly fortunate I am to have this happen. I’m sure anyone would agree that having a childhood memory, that took place in a very ordinary house in a remote country town, presented in such a powerful way is mind blowing! Suddenly the ordinary becomes extraordinary. Who will be sitting alongside of you during the world premiere performance? I am the youngest of eight children – so my family is enormous! They are all so incredibly supportive – so they will there! Did you provide any instructions to composer Glyn on how you wanted the music to sound? Apart from the song ‘Cold July Day’ which was a finished work when I played it to Glyn, I let Glyn explore his own creative space. I think that space is very important in creative partnerships and I make the analogy of working with an
