Nick Bolton holds up a portrait of himself painted by one of the Bali Nine “ring leaders”, Myu Sukamaran, during his time in Kerobokan Prison. Myu was executed in 2015. Photo: Nick Bolton.
This Thursday (6 March) Screen Illawarra chair Nick Bolton will tell you a tale he has been telling for about 18 years.
Approaching the 10th anniversary of the execution of his friends, Andrew Chan and Myu Sukamaran – two names burned into the Australian psyche for their role as the “ring leaders” of the Bali Nine – it’s an auspicious event.
You may have heard a version of the Bali Nine story in the news. You may have even seen one of the multiple iterations of the play Nick first produced in 2008, Bondi Dreaming.
But Nick says the story is vastly different depending on who is telling it, and the moment in time it’s told.
“The play was inspired by a survey published in The Australian, which revealed that 50 per cent of Australians supported the execution of the Bali Nine,” he says.
“That kind of blew us away. When you think of the mistakes we’re capable of when we’re 18, 19, 20. To think one terrible choice could condemn you at that age …”
Admittedly when Nick took on the project, the Bali Nine weren’t really on his radar, and telling their story wasn’t his objective. He liked what Bondi Dreaming said about male mateship.
Even so, the independent play staged at The Newtown Theatre garnered critical acclaim and later received a grant to be restaged at the larger, more prestigious Seymour Centre.
ArtsHub called it a modern Australian classic. Leland Kean, now the artistic director of Merrigong Theatre, championed it and brought it to The Bondi Pavilion. In 2011, when the show was to be staged a third time, Leland’s wife Kar Chalmers, a publicist working on the show, challenged them.
“She said, ‘This the third time the show will be restaged. What’s your new angle?'” Nick says.
Then four words changed everything.
Two members of the small cast, Toby Levins and Marcel Bracks, couldn’t do the show and the creative team decided to take their successors, Christian (Willo) Willis and Wayne Bradley, away with Bondi Dreaming original Greg Hatton for a weekend to bond and rehearse.
“That’s when Willo suggested ‘Let’s go to Bali,'” Nick says.
“Until then, attempts to reach out to the (understandably) media-wary family of the Bali Nine were fruitless. Now Willo was suggesting we get inside the prison at Kerobokan. We all sort of thought it was a joke, but the next morning, we booked our tickets.”
Meeting the Bali Nine was a humbling experience for Nick Bolton and Sam Atwell, who visited them in Kerobokan Prison multiple times. Photo: Nick Bolton.
Three weeks later, reality set in and fear gripped Nick as he walked into Kerobokan Prison with Bondi Dreaming writer and co-producer, former Home and Away star Sam Atwell.
“Here we were about to meet the subjects of the play that had consumed us for so long, and I thought, ‘What are we doing? We’re about to meet convicted drug traffickers in a prison filled with murderers and rapists,'” Nick says.
“All of a sudden I was acutely aware of how extremely privileged I was and felt terribly naive and ‘soft’. My heart was pounding.
“Then we were face-to-face with these young men who were the most humble, relaxed, kind, caring men I’d ever met. They had made the most amazing difference to other prisoners in that jail through education, teaching them English, computer skills and art.
“They had totally atoned for their sins and were doing their downright hardest to make themselves better people and make those around them better.”
Nick and Sam returned to Kerobokan Prison four times, became close with the once wary families and partnered with the Mercy Campaign, led by The Guardian‘s Bridget Delaney.
Nick will present a new version of this tale – though pared down to 10 minutes, still miraculously profound – in the inaugural Illawarra “Stories That Stir” event.
This series of events encourages people to express their truths and share their stories, to break down barriers, stir conversation and inspire positive change.
The movement is expanding around the globe through community events and collaborations with “soul-aligned organisations”.
The Illawarra event will be presented at Entelechy Living, a community not-for-profit health and wellness hub housed in the historic Woonona Bulli School of Arts.
Organiser Anna Carson says all are invited to attend and, perhaps, be inspired to share their own story.
“The underlying belief is that everyone has a story worth sharing, she says.
While locked away on death row in a foreign land, Myu Sukamaran of the Bali Nine discovered his God-given talent as an artist. Photo: Nick Bolton.
Stories That Stir founder Monica Rosenfeld will attend the inaugural Illawarra event, which presents six extraordinary, raw and personal 10-minute stories with the theme of “Hidden”.
“I was attracted to this project because I’m a filmmaker and love telling stories,” Nick says.
“As the chair of Screen Illawarra I’m also passionate about the power of community, and I believe events like this are opportunities to build on ours.
“It’s something different for people to do. Ditch Love Island on the tele, forget your doom scrolling and come see interesting people tell interesting stories that might just change the way you see the world.”
Stories That Stir launches on Wednesday 6 March, from 6 to 9 pm at Entelechy Living at Woonona Bulli School of Arts, 479 Princes Highway, Woonona.
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