Time for an encore

It’s very much a case of unfinished business for Marina Prior and David Hobson, who had their immensely popular tour interrupted by the pandemic.

Marina says it was a devastating time for artists across the country but particularly in Melbourne with the extended lockdown. 

“My husband’s an actor as well, so being in Victoria we were devastated by the loss of work, it was horrendous,” she recalls. 

“We have five children, so there was a lot going on at home with the kids doing their high school and university studies online. But as someone who is usually always on the road, I was able to be grateful for the time I spent at home. I’m a homebody by nature so I just pottered around the house cooking for myself and everyone else.”

Fellow Melburnian David agrees. 

“There wasn’t a lot we could do as performers other than rehearse and maybe do a bit of recording. We did a couple of shows on Zoom. It wasn’t very satisfactory.

“I’m into sport and I usually play with a footy club twice a week, but we couldn’t do that because of the restrictions. So instead, a couple of friends and I would meet at a park and play frisbee golf. That became our pandemic activity, which we’ve actually continued even now. But now it’s amazing to be back on track and we are so excited to be performing in front of audiences again.”

Kicking off in July, Marina and David, along with renowned pianist David Cameron, will embark on their biggest tour to date, with over 60 shows around the country. The final run of The 2 Of Us will feature brand-new songs, backstage and life stories, and classics from their vast repertoire spanning 35 years.

“It’s been beyond our wildest dreams to travel this beautiful country of ours being supported by Australians in our own backyard,” Marina says. “It’s great that we have the opportunity to take the show to people in areas around the country that we may not have otherwise been able to get to with some of the bigger productions we perform in.

"A show on the main stage of the Sydney Opera House is no different to us than a show in a regional theatre. We bring the same enthusiasm wherever we go.

“We love travelling in the tour bus to regional areas. People in those areas are often starved of the entertainment options you get in the major cities, and some of these places have also been flood and fire affected, so it feels really meaningful for us to be there. We love being able to sign CDs for people and chat to them after the show.” 

David calls the two-hour show an “up close and personal experience”. 

“It’s like you’re in our living room and we’re in yours, singing both your and our favourite songs with a few funny career stories thrown in.”

Did they ever imagine, as youngsters, that they’d be where they are now?

“No way!” they both laugh. 

“I was a total jock and had no ambition or intention of becoming a singer, even though I began singing as part of a choir at a young age,” David explains. 

“But music has always been a part of me, I’ve always done it. I fell into opera music because I wrote a rock opera called Macbeth, and my voice was heard on the demo, which is how I ended up in opera. It was all a bit of an accident. It chose me!”

“This is the best job in the world, to us,” Marina says. 

“Even now as I’m performing Mary Poppins in Melbourne, hearing the audience come in as you’re offstage, still gives me an absolute thrill. I often think to myself in those moments, how did I get so lucky that this is my job? I get quite overwhelmed sometimes.” 

With Marina performing in Mary Poppins until the end of June and David working on a show with Colin Lane—of Lano and Woodley fame—called In Tails, life is certainly returning to the hectic pre-pandemic pace the pair is used to. 

Asking what they like to do in their downtime, David says sport continues to be one of his favourite things, while Marina recently began making her own candles.

“I’ve always loved beautifully scented candles,” she says. 

“During the pandemic I learned how to make my own. I love it! I find it really meditative. On my days off, I put on some music and just sit there making batches of candles. It’s really relaxing.” 

To catch the final run of The 2 Of Us, visit marinaprioranddavidhobson.com

David Hobson is one of Australia’s best-known operatic tenors and recording artists. He has sung and performed many roles for Opera Australia, performed lead roles in musical theatre and sung for Queen Elizabeth II. He has toured extensively as a concert performer, performed the national anthem at prestigious sporting events and is known to TV audiences for his appearances on Spicks and Specks, Dancing with the Stars, It Takes Two and Carols by Candlelight. 

Marina Prior is regarded as Australia’s leading lady of musical theatre, best known for her lead roles in The Phantom of the Opera and Les Misérables, to name just two of over 30 musicals she has starred in. She has performed with international stars including Richard Harris and José Carreras, has performed with both the Melbourne and Sydney Theatre Companies, and is well known for her Carols by Candlelight performances. Marina was also inducted as one of Australia’s 100 Entertainers of the Century. 

This article is featured in the Autumn 2023 issue of National Seniors Australia’s quarterly member magazine, Our Generation. 

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