Steve Vizard Finds The Humour In Heartbreak For His Cabaret Hit, 'Vigil'

It's often said that there's a hair's breadth between comedy and tragedy, and indeed, the humorous and the heartbreaking are often inseparably intertwined. The quid pro quo between sadness and joy is a facet of the human psyche well-known to comedians, but for veteran comedy writer and entertainer Steve Vizard, a deeply personal loss would give him a profound new perspective on this essential relationship. "Last year, I lost my mum. Now, I'm older and my mum was older again, you know. She had a good life - you rationalise it like that. But nevertheless, when you lose your parent, it's still a very significant thing, no matter when it happens," he shares.

"Mum had been living in a retirement village for a few months, and my brother and sister and I would take turns going to visit her. But this one particular night my sister said to me, 'I'm coming down from the country - I just want to be with mum today.' And I said that I did as well. I don't know why we felt drawn to her, but we both went in there about five o'clock and just sat there and talked to her. We told jokes, stories about the family, but she wasn't really responding - she was in and out. At about 12:17 am, I remember exactly, she had been hardly moving at all, but then all movement ceased completely. She had died. And what had we spent that last day talking about? The minutiae of things that probably sound completely trivial. It's that subtle mix of talking about things that seem totally unimportant but also considering big, universal truths. What was the colour of your slippers? What was the name of that teacher you had in second grade? Shall we turn the room temp up a degree? Underneath those simple, silly things you're actually talking about the biggest ideas you can talk about in life - what happens now? Where do we go from here? Is there anything else?"

As countless artists have done before him, Vizard would channel this emotionally wrought experience through the prism of his creativity, in a collaboration with pianist and composer Joe Chindamo. The result, true to his comic form, is a mercurial, thoroughly funny-yet-bittersweet evening of musical theatre, with Vizard's lyrics telling the story of Liz, a 30-something woman who on an obligatory Christmas visit to see her parents is suddenly confronted by the prospect of losing one of them. "This is a piece about someone who has come to say hello and ends up having to say goodbye, and that's a crucial question: how do we say goodbye? The idea of not leaving something until it's too late is something that really resonates with me," Vizard explains. "I had lost my mum and Joe had lost his dad the year before, so creating something that explored those feelings - well, I thought it could be poignant and beautiful, and actually very funny as well, because comedy is a coping mechanism we all use."

"The idea of not leaving something until it's too late really resonates with me"

Vigil, which premiered at the Adelaide Cabaret Festival, earned a slew of rave reviews in its debut season, praised by critics for both its entertainment factor and the vivid authenticity of its anti-heroine. Vizard was immediately drawn to music as the best vehicle for Liz's story, building on the success of his first chamber opera libretto for composer and Jazz icon Paul Grabowsky's Banquet Of Secrets, premiered by Victorian Opera last year. "I think the power of songs to create transformational moments, not just in terms of characters but in terms of narratives, is almost magical," Vizard notes. "I actually think that's one of the great things that first attracted me to musical theatre, and opera, and the stage - those magical moments where music and words and all of the mechanics of a performance combine to create something truly special. I think it's got to be one of the high points of my career to have been able to work with such great composers."

With such personal material at the heart of this production, finding the right person to play Liz was crucial. Fortunately, the performer entrusted with this capricious and complicated character wasn't hard to find; actress and singer Christie Whelan Browne was both Vizard's and Chindamo's first choice. "She is so, so talented," Vizard enthuses. "She has an incredible voice, she's a superb comedian, so I really wanted us to construct a piece that was totally tailored to her."

And the writer certainly hasn't held back in creating a role of intense emotional and psychological complexity, fit for a virtuoso talent like Whelan Browne. "Liz is a difficult character. She's 30-something, slightly narcissistic, just living her own life. Almost like a prodigal daughter, but she's ignored the things she should have attended to in her life. She's on the run from obligation and duty - and, in fact, she's probably on the run from herself, really. So, being forced to come home and confront her past and everything she's run away from, is incredibly demanding. And Christie just has all the delicacy and instinct to find those shades of denial and humour and sensitivity that you need for this show."

Best known for his TV credits, most notably the Logie Award-winning comedy sketch show Fast Forward, Vizard's venture into theatre work may seem like a big departure. But if his recent forays into the world of opera and musical theatre appear like a new venture, they are, in fact, a homecoming, Vizard reveals. As a Uni student, earning some extra cash at a cabaret-style theatre restaurant, Vizard and Grabowsky's first joint ventures were a little less high-brow than the highly lauded opera they'd produce decades later. "I think there was one called 'Slipped Disco', which was, well, the worst! If disco hadn't been already on the way out, this would have finished it off. It was appalling," Vizard laughs. "But it was a completely developed, totally sung-through show. I mean, it was bad. Really bad. But we sort of cut our teeth learning how to write lyrics and put together songs. Obviously, we went our separate ways, both had our own careers after that, but this is definitely a return. I love musical theatre - I've always been attracted to it."

Arts Centre Melbourne present Vigil starring Christie Whelan Browne, 4 — 8 July.