Mitchell family try something new
Gore's musical family are incorporating never-before-seen theatrical elements into their live show this weekend.
Country-folk musicians the Mitchell family will be adding acting to their list of talents during their live show at the Saint James this Saturday.
Jenny Mitchell said her dad Ron and sisters Maegan and Nicola have put extra effort into the Mitchell show, which will feature three different "spaces" on stage.
"It's a little bit more than just us standing on a stage and singing songs," she said.
In between songs, she said the group will act-out parts of their story, with one of the sets on stage made to represent their lounge from home.
Another space of the stage is where their usual band will sit, telling the story of their lives as professional musicians.
"It's kind of like a representation, I guess, of all the different corners of where music has taken our family," she said.
The family have all been writing and releasing music individually as well as together. Ron Mitchell's latest album Dead on Country was released in February, and Jenny's latest offering, Forest House , came out last Friday.
The show will feature a set of their original songs as well as some surprise special guests, who Jenny said they are all very excited about.
They got to choose one musical guest each, the twins Maegan and Nicola sharing a vote.
Her sisters did not mind having to share, she said, because they were both so happy about who they had lined up.
Jenny is flying in for the show, taking a brief break from supporting country singer-songwriter Kasey Chambers in her 32-date Australian tour.
She said her sisters joined her for a portion of the tour, and when they came off stage after the first night, Chambers asked if they could stay on for the rest of the dates.
"We just kind of get each other about all that stuff," she said.
Rehearsing for the show has been a challenge, with Jenny now based in Melbourne and her sisters in other parts of Aotearoa.
Jenny said they had to send Nicola to rehearse with the band in Christchurch, pretending to be each of her relatives, before making group calls to "work out all the kinks".
The show will be Jenny's only appearance during the Tussock Country musical festival and she said she "just couldn't miss it".
She said after moving to Australia in February, this was the longest she had ever been away from Gore.
She was excited to play her new music and in the Saint James, which would be a first for the family, too.
"It'll be like the biggest show that we've ever done," she said.
ella.scott-fleming@alliedpress.co.nz
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