World music favourites MZAZA have created a theatrical musical experience like no other in collaboration with some of Australia’s leading theatre-makers. The Birth and Death of Stars is a show that invites audiences to leave the daily world behind to contemplate our magical place in the universe.

Based on the album of the same name, the show draws inspiration from history’s philosophers and astronomers, leading us on a surreal voyage through the ether to explore what links us to each other and the world around us in ways that are poetic, moving and at times funny.

Sitting comfortably between music and theatre, the show is brought to the stage by a powerful collaboration of creative minds featuring director Benjamin Knapton, writer Pauline Maudy, Finnish animator Laura Matikainen, and design consultant Alison Ross.

This production has received critical acclaim, premiering at Brisbane Festival in 2020 followed by a tour to some of Queensland’s leading venues. It is accompanied by a very popular community engagement workshop program. Workshops can be customised to suit diverse groups such as primary and high schools, emerging artists of all ages, adult music groups, language learners, cultural groups, groups with a lived experience of mental health or disability, and seniors.

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Biography

Three-time Queensland Music Award winners MZAZA deliver Balkan-French inspired sounds to music lovers internationally. Led by enchanting French-Sephardic vocalist Pauline Maudy, this group of musicians from around the world has been mesmerising audiences with powerful and inspired performances. The impressive musicianship of MZAZA – deftly realised with accordion, violin, percussion, double bass and Flamenco guitar – embraces diversity, the old and the new, the familiar and the foreign, through timeless melodies. It is the timelessness of the music and stories that fuels an intense show, an unforgettable musical journey, that has enraptured audiences at venues, festivals, and visited airwaves internationally. Jaw-dropping technique, unique compositions and captivating shows have earned MZAZA supports for the likes of the Violent Femmes (USA) Yasmin Levy (Israel), Melbourne Ska Orchestra (AUS), Baba Zula and Baro Banda (Turkey), and DJ Click (France).

To access feedback gathered from audience, workshop participants and presenters via a Culture Counts Survey of The Birth and Death of Stars visit: Culture Counts Survey_The Birth and Death of Stars Queensland 2020 Tour