Classic Adventures: Witches & Wizards
Family Event
Saturday 4 October, 11:30am & 1.30pm | Heath Ledger Theatre, State Theatre Centre of WA
Jen Winley | Conductor
West Australian Symphony Orchestra respectfully acknowledges the Traditional Custodians and Elders of Country throughout Western Australia, and the Whadjuk Noongar people on whose lands we work and share music.
How to use your Digital Program
Welcome
Hello young witches and wizards, warlocks and druids, fauns and fae, as well as any miscellaneous magical creatures in our enchanted audience.
You are officially invited (by Conductor Jen, myself, and the spell binding musicians of the West Australian Symphony Orchestra) to step into a world bubbling with wonder and hocus pocus. Imagine your shiniest, most sparkly wand waving in the air… and hey-presto! You’re ready to embark on a brilliant musical adventure full of magic, melody, and just a little mischief (I will try to be on my best behaviour!).
Today, keep your eyes and ears wide open! Together we’ll travel from the electrifying incantations of Harry Potter and his owl Hedwig, to the twinkling charm of the Sugar Plum Fairy. We’ll soar high enough to defy gravity, then slip into Willy Wonka’s world for the premiere of a brand-new piece that reveals the secret spells behind the chocolate factory.
Today’s concert is all about the simple magic of music and the pure joy it brings when we listen together. So, set your imaginations free, let your hearts flutter, and prepare for take-off into a land of sorcery and enchantment.
Please remember to keep an eye on your dragon during the performance, the trumpets don’t like getting singed.
Let the music weave its spell—alakazam!
Adam (Level 3 Wizard)
Classic Adventures: Witches & Wizards
John WILLIAMS Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone Suite: Hedwig’s Theme (6 mins)
Pyotr Ilyich TCHAIKOVSKY Nutcracker Suite: Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy (3 mins)
Sahil SIDHU Willy Wonka was a Wizard, Harry (3 mins)
John WILLIAMS Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone Suite: Harry’s Wondrous World (6 mins)
Igor STRAVINSKY Firebird: Finale (3 mins)
Paul DUKAS Sorcerer’s Apprentice (9 mins)
Stephen SCHWARTZ arr. Ted RICKETTS Highlights from Wicked (7 mins)
Jen Winley conductor
Adam Mitchell presenter
This concert does not contain an interval. Presented in association with the 2025 AWESOME Festival. Jen Winley is supported by the Simon Lee Foundation and the JACE Foundation.
WASO On Stage
About the Artists
Jen Winley
Conductor
Jen Winley was appointed WASO Associate Conductor in 2024. An accomplished percussionist and timpanist, Jen has appeared in regular performance with WASO, and with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (MSO), Orchestra Victoria, and West Australian Opera (WAO).
Jen made her professional conducting debut in 2020 in WASO’s Emerging Conductors program. She went on to lead WASO in a variety of performances. Highlights include Home Alone in Concert, and the premiere performances of Drapht and WASO: How the West Was Won; a collaboration with Perth hip-hop artist Drapht, culminating in WASO’s first music videos.
Jen is highly focused on innovative programming development for educational and family concerts, and has frequently collaborated with acclaimed animateur, Paul Rissman. She oversees the WASO Conducting Fellowship Program and has conducted the Western Australian Youth Orchestra since 2019.
In 2025, Jen will conduct Symphony on the Waterfront in her first appearance with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, debut with the Melbourne Youth Orchestra, and return to WAO as Assistant Conductor for Verdi’s Il trovatore.
Jen Winley is supported by the Simon Lee Foundation and the JACE Foundation.
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About the Artists
Adam Mitchell
Presenter
Adam is a freelance multi award-winning stage director known for his inventive productions. He has experience working across artforms in theatres, concert halls and festivals, creating works for adults, families and children.
He was the Associate and Resident Director for Black Swan State Theatre Company and has directed multiple productions for the company, including Oil, Every Brilliant Thing, Next to Normal, Clinton: The Musical, Summer of the Seventeenth Doll, and When the Rain Stops Falling. Other highlight works include The Snow (Barking Gecko Theatre Company); independent work La Fanciulla del West (Freeze Frame Opera); and commercial production Fame - The Musical (Crown).
He regularly directs for WAAPA, has worked with West Australian Opera, NIDA, Victoria College of the Arts, WASO, Playwriting Australia, Sydney and Melbourne Theatre Companies, Barking Gecko Theatre Company, and The Australian Theatre for Young People, and is a member of the Lincoln Centre Theater Directors Lab.
He is a 40 Under 40 Award winner and has received Equity Guild Awards, Blue Room Theatre Awards, PAWA Awards, and the Martin Sims and The West Australian Arts Editor Award.
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About WASO
Engage | Excite | Experience | Educate
From the centre of Perth to the furthest corners of the state, we have provided the soundtrack to life in WA since 1928.
As the State Orchestra, Perth’s first and finest, WASO is the largest employer of performing artists in Western Australia and reaches two million people with musical experiences each year on stage, in our community, and online.
From concert stages to classrooms, hospitals to aged care, we bring joy, inspire learning, and nurture participation in our community, because everybody deserves the opportunity to experience live music. Every year, through community and leading industry partnerships, we engage a new generation of young and emerging artists to help secure a bright future for music in Australia.
We celebrate our rich classical music heritage with great artists from all over the world and commission and perform new repertoire to renew and expand it. The Orchestra collaborates widely with major arts companies and independent artists, performing opera to ballet, movies to musicals, jazz to rock.
Asher Fisch is Principal Conductor and Artistic Adviser of our Orchestra. We champion the diversity of music in all its forms, with a team of talented and passionate people who create unforgettable experiences for all West Australians to enjoy.
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Your Concert Experience
Get the best out of your concert experience at Heath Ledger Theatre.
- Explore the music
Be sure to take a quick look at the performance schedule or enjoy a deep dive into the music with your concert program online or in the foyer. - Share with your friends
Snap a selfie from your seat, capture the artist bows and share the experience with friends. Don’t forget to tag us! #wasymphonyorchestra - Clap with enthusiasm
Whether you are welcoming your favourite artist to the stage, or showing appreciation at the end of a piece, we love thunderous applause. Not sure when to clap? Here’s a tip; if the conductor’s arm is raised, hold it. If it’s relaxed, go for it! - Respect those around you
Ensure your mobile phone is on silent and does not disrupt the experience of those around you. If you need to cough or sneeze, please do this into your elbow. - Accessible services available
For information about our services, such as assisted hearing, lifts and accessible toilets, please ask one of our friendly Front of House team members. - Latecomers admitted at a suitable time
If you arrive late or leave your seat during a performance, your auditorium entry will need to wait until a suitable break. - First Aid available
St John First Aid officers are present at every WASO concert. Please notify a team member if you require any first aid assistance. - Box Office is open
Get tickets to your next WASO experience at the Box Office located in the Main Foyer of the State Theatre Centre of WA. The Box Office is open from 10am on the day of performance. Alternatively, you can visit waso.com.au to buy online or book an in-person ticketing appointment by calling (08) 9326 0000.
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