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the silent anzac

2 PM, Sunday 9th November 2025, Hawthorn Town Hall

Every year, on 11 November at 11 am we pause to remember those men and women who have served and those who have died in all wars and peacekeeping operations. 


This year on Sunday 9th of November, we invite everyone to commemorate Australia's fallen at this award winning musical performance paying tribute to our fallen. 


An Exhibition of memorabilia and personal commemorations opens at 1 pm. 

The performance commences at 2 pm and stars the outstanding talents of Margaret Haggartt, Matt Hetherington, Jamie Lawson and introduces, Meggyann Davie-Smyth as 'The Girl'. 


(Photo: crew of the Australian submarine AE2 on deck of the AE2).

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Become Involved

Include your personal commemoration in the performance and exhibition. To add your personal commemoration click the button below or email photos to contacttheskunk@gmail.com

Become Involved

Reviews

This show toured the UK, France and Belgium in November 2018 to commemorate the centenary of Armistice of WW1. It received many glowing reviews from audiences and critics alike.

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Featuring

'The Mother' Margaret Haggart OAM

'The Soldier' Matt Hetherington

'The Soldier' Matt Hetherington

  Margaret is one of Australia's foremost sopranos.


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'The Soldier' Matt Hetherington

'The Soldier' Matt Hetherington

'The Soldier' Matt Hetherington

  Matt Hetherington is a multi-award-winning actor / singer. 

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'The Bandsman' Jamie Lawson OAM

'The Girl' Meggyann Davie-Smyth

'The Girl' Meggyann Davie-Smyth

  Jamie Lawson is a multi award winning performer and conductor 

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'The Girl' Meggyann Davie-Smyth

'The Girl' Meggyann Davie-Smyth

'The Girl' Meggyann Davie-Smyth

Introducing, Meggyann Davie- Smyth 

The Show

The Show depicts the trials and tribulations of a family, both those at home and those at the Front, during WW1, and depicts characters and events from the opening of the Gallipoli campaign to the final months of the war. The show is based on true stories and explores the emotional highs and lows both at the front and at home.  The characters in the show, "The Mother", "The Girl" and "The Soldier" represent all families who have experienced war.

Exhibition

The Exhibition includes memorabilia from WWI and other conflicts.  Commemorative projects and posters submitted by members of the public, about individual service men and women, will also be on display.  If a member of your family has served in any of Australia's wars or conflicts, this is your chance to tell their story.  (For more information, see the section below, "Become Involved ").

become involved

Personal dedications

Submit a photo and brief biography of your service man or woman for inclusion in the commemorations/dedication section of the performance and also in The Silent Anzac Commemorative Program.


You may submit any person who has served in any conflict up to the present day.

Create a Poster

Create a poster about your service man or woman which will be exhibited in the foyer of the Hawthorn Town Hall.  The poster can contain: 

  • photos
  • biographical details
  • copies of awards, citations, letters etc.
  • a dedication (eg. "Dedicated to the memory of ........ by the .........family".

If your service man or woman is still living or currently serving you can still create a poster to honour their service.

Commemorate with Poppies

Commemorate with Poppies

You may like to commemorate our fallen service men and women by creating your own poppy(s) for display at the Hawthorn Town Hall. Poppies may be knitted, crocheted or craft made. Click on the button below for patterns and examples.


(Photo: Poppies made by Victorian school children on display at the Australian Emabassy in Paris before travelling to the Australian National Memorial at  Villers-Bretonneux , Nov 2018.)

About "The Silent anzac"

Australian Submarine AE2

The Australian Submarine AE2 obtained the nickname "The Silent Anzac"  as it was able to silently penetrate enemy defences, underwater. 


In the early morning hours of 25 April 1915, the AE2 was the first allied vessel to breach the defences of the Dardanelle Straits and venture into the Sea of Marmara where its orders were to "run amok" in order to disrupt supplies and reinforcements from Constantinople to the Gallipoli peninsula - where the Anzacs were to land only a few hours later. 


NZ composer Todd Smith has composed a major work called "The Silent Anzac" recounting the exploits of the AE2 which will be performed during the show.

The Silent Anzac Today

Today, the term, "The Silent Anzac" has come to refer to not only the AE2, but also to the many Australians who lie silently in graves in foreign lands or beneath the sea and also the many service men and women who returned, mentally and physically scarred, and who suffered in silence.

Personal commemorations & Dedications

    To add your personal commemoration or dedication to this web page and The Silent Anzac commemorative program, click the button below.

    Register Your Commemoration

    "The silent anzac" - review - UK & european tour 2018

    4barsrest - Peter Bale, UK

    "The Silent Anzac' musical journey  ........... (from) the exploits of submarine AE2 in the Dardenelles in the First World War ........... to the heart of the old British Empire for which so many Australians gave their lives.


    The presentation made use of actors and singers, together with contemporary film and still shots, interspersed with poems and dialogue. 

    Following Wilfred Owen’s 'The Pity of War', a single bell introduced Danielle Matthews to sing 'Amazing Grace' - joined by principal cornet Jamie Lawson dressed in Anzac uniform, and the band.

    A First World War compilation led by Danielle and Margaret Haggart, included the delightfully cheeky 'Nursie! Nursie!' before Jamie Lawson presented a fine setting of 'The Lark on the Clear Air' - opening with a striking cadenza.

    Emotive performance

    Todd Smith's demanding commission, 'The Silent Anzac' gained an emotive performance that encapsulated both the turmoil of war, particularly in the more aggressive sections, as well as its moments of calm; including an interlude featuring the vibraphone and a sweeping melody over a side drum pulse.

    The climax was heralded by the soprano with a sustained, ringing top C. 

    An intense reading of 'Nimrod' was a fitting close to the first half.

    Todd Smith's demanding commission, 'The Silent Anzac' gained an emotive performance that encapsulated both the turmoil of war, particularly in the more aggressive sections, as well as its moments of calm; including an interlude featuring the vibraphone and a sweeping melody over a side drum pulse. 

    Powerful

    The second focused on the personal effects of war, both at the front and at home; opening with a recording of Prime Minister Billy Hughes drumming up support for conscription - as powerful today as it was over a century ago.

    A crisp rendition of Lithgow's march 'Victoria' preceded Joe Stanley, in the role of an Anzac soldier, singing, 'And the band played Waltzing Matilda', accompanied by the ensemble and the keyboard of Steve Semmier-Farr.

    The vivid impact of war was conveyed with the disturbing 'Dies Irae' from Britten's 'War Requiem' and a powerful interpretation of the rock group Iron Maiden's 'Passchendaele'.

    Margaret Haggart brought poignancy to 'Dido's Lament', before the presentation closed with 'Abide With Me'; starting with Danielle singing unaccompanied, and incorporating the band singing and Jamie Lawson playing ‘The Last Post’.

    The quote from Turkish statesman Mustafa Ataturk, summed up the universal sense of tragic loss: The foreign dead had become their dead now that the guns had fallen silent.

    It brought to a close a powerful, emotional experience.

    Peter Bale

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