TALENTED Indigenous Musical Theatre Performer Lorinda May Merrypor from The Sapphire’s theatre show stopped by Mossman last week and spoke to us as part of her “Let’s Connect” tour.
“Let’s Connect is really all about getting into communities and inspiring and motivating the younger generation of Indigenous kids to pursue a career in the arts,” said Ms. Merrypor.
“Pursuing a career in the arts isn’t heavily promoted to our young Indigenous kids and I really want to show them that it is possible. You can do it. You can become a singer. You can become an actor. These are avenues that are available to you.”
Her message to kids who are interested in the arts is simple, “just start.” “I grew up in Rocky (Rockhamption) so I didn’t grow up in the big city. Anything is totally possible. You can look things up online – I taught myself to play the guitar online. You can learn to sing online. If you want to act, learn a scene from your favourite movie or TV show. Start dancing to your favourite songs. You can honestly start by yourself at home and explore and develop your craft from there. Whatever you do it all helps.” Says Ms Merrypor.
Lorinda encourages kids to reach out to her directly. “Message me through my Instagram and I would love to connect with you.”
She hopes to see many more Indigenous kids representing the Australian Performing Arts scene. “There’s so much talent out there – lets discover it and celebrate it, and help our talented kids shine.”
Lorinda delighted us with a special performance during her time in Mossman, and promises she will be back in 2021.
The Let’s Connect project is supported by the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland.
