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Deborah Joy Cheetham AO (born 24 November 1964), is an Aboriginal Australian soprano, actor, composer and playwright.

Deborah Cheetham AO
Born	Deborah Joy Cheetham (1964-11-24) 24 November 1964 (age 57) Nowra, New South Wales, Australia
Education	Bachelor of Music, NSW Conservatorium of Music
Occupation	Singer actor composer playwright

Early life and education

Cheetham is a member of the Stolen Generations; she was taken from her mother when she was three weeks old[1] and was raised by a white baptist family. Jimmy Little was her uncle.

Cheetham graduated from the NSW Conservatorium of Music with a Bachelor of Music Education Degree.[2]

Career

In 1997 Cheetham wrote the autobiographical play White Baptist Abba Fan which tells of her experiences of coming to terms with her homosexuality and racial identity while trying to reunite with her Aboriginal family.[1][3] White Baptist Abba Fan has toured internationally.[4]

As a soprano, Cheetham has performed in France, Germany, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and New Zealand.[5] She sang at the opening ceremonies of the 2000 Summer Olympics and the 2003 Rugby World Cup.[6][7]

In October 2010, Cheetham's opera Pecan Summer, based on the 1939 Cummeragunja walk-off, opened in Mooroopna, Victoria. She wrote, composed and performed in the production by the Short Black Opera Company.[8][9]

Cheetham has advocated for the lyrics to "Advance Australia Fair" to be rewritten.[10]

In 2018 Cheetham was one of 52 people who contributed to Anita Heiss's book Growing Up Aboriginal In Australia, along with Adam Goodes, Miranda Tapsell and Celeste Liddle.

Cheetham wrote Australia's first requiem based on the frontier wars between first nations people in South Western Victoria and settlers between 1840–1863.[11] The requiem, "Eumeralla, a war requiem for peace" is sung entirely in the Gunditjmara language.[11] The first performance of the requiem on 15 June 2019 will feature Cheetham with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, the MSO Chorus and the Dhungala Children's Choir.[11]

In November 2019, Cheetham was appointed Professor of Practice at the Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music at Monash University. She is also the 2020 Composer in Residence at the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.[12]

Cheetham's second opera, Parrwang Lifts the Sky, will premiere during Victorian Opera's 2021 season and will be sung in the Wadawurrung language.[13]

Her work Ancient Land Processional performed in three indigenous languages, was commissioned by the University of South Australia and is performed at every graduation ceremony [14][15].

In 2022, a new short work, Ghost Light, was performed as part of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra's 50 Fanfares Project.

Awards and honours

In the 2014 Queen's Birthday Honours List, Cheetham was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO), for "distinguished service to the performing arts as an opera singer, composer and artistic director, to the development of Indigenous artists, and to innovation in performance".[16]

In April 2018, the University of South Australia awarded Cheetham an Honorary Doctorate (D.Univ.) in recognition of her distinguished service to the community.[17]

Australian Women in Music Awards

The Australian Women in Music Awards is an annual event that celebrates outstanding women in the Australian Music Industry who have made significant and lasting contributions in their chosen field. They commenced in 2018.

Year	Nominee / work	Award	Result
2018[18]	Deborah Cheetham	Auriel Andrew Memorial Award	Won
2021[19]	Deborah Cheetham	Lifetime Achievement Award	awarded

Bernard Heinze Memorial Award

The Sir Bernard Heinze Memorial Award is given to a person who has made an outstanding contribution to music in Australia.

Year	Nominee / work	Award	Result
2019[20]	Deborah Cheetham	Sir Bernard Heinze Memorial Award	awarded

Helpmann Awards

The Helpmann Awards is an awards show, celebrating live entertainment and performing arts in Australia, presented by industry group Live Performance Australia (LPA) since 2001.[21] In 2020, Cheetham received the JC Williamson Award, the LPA's highest honour, for their life's work in live performance.[22]

Year	Nominee / work	Award	Result
2020	Deborah Cheetham	JC Williamson Award	awarded

Music Victoria Awards

The Music Victoria Awards, are an annual awards night celebrating Victorian music. They commenced in 2005.

Year	Nominee / work	Award	Result	Ref.
2021	Deborah Cheetham (with Byron Scullin and Tom Supple)	Best Experimental Act or Avant-Garde Act	Nominated	[23][24]

National Live Music Awards

The National Live Music Awards (NLMAs) are a broad recognition of Australia's diverse live industry, celebrating the success of the Australian live scene. The awards commenced in 2016.

Year	Nominee / work	Award	Result
National Live Music Awards of 2019[25][26]	Deborah Cheetham	Live Classical Act of the Year	Won

Victorian Honour Roll of Women

The Victorian Honour Roll of Women was established in 2001 to recognise the achievements of women from the Australian state of Victoria.

Year	Nominee / work	Award	Result
2015[27]	Deborah Cheetham	Victorian Honour Roll of Women	awarded

References

На других языках

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- [en] Deborah Cheetham

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[es] Deborah Cheetham

Deborah Joy Cheetham, AO (24 de noviembre de 1964 (57 años) Nowra, Nueva Gales del Sur), es una artista, compositora, cantante soprano, actriz, y dramaturga originaria australiana.[1]

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