Mary-Jane Field

Mary-Jane Field, a Sydney folksinger brought up in South America , has long been interested in Domitila’s story and she has brought it to life in this unusual production.  She has written the music for the Cantata, including a piece which fuses Bolivian rhythms with the Japanese koto and classical stringed instruments.

The spoken words are in Spanish and English and as a composite they paint a picture of aspects of Domitila’s life and of the situation of the miners. Mary-Jane Field has also written the dialogue, in some cases using words by Domitila  from her book Let Me Speak! (Si Me Permiten Hablar in the original Spanish).

Mary-Jane Field has a great admiration for the Bolivian people, their culture and their music. This is one of the reasons for the Cantata. It is a true labour of love, a way she can express her thanks for all the riches her association with Bolivian friends -- in Australia and in La Paz, where she visited and studied music -- has brought her.

Another motivation is expressed in some of the dialogue in the show. Domitila suffered many hardships, yet, like many others, she never allowed herself to stop speaking out:

“...If people like me speak out then perhaps we can all learn something, something we can use to protect ourselves and our children from social and economic injustice...”