February 24, 2025 • 5 mins
Our good friend Tom Gleisner joins Jonesy & Amanda to chat about his new musical, Bloom.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
And Amanda jam Nation. The next guest is Well.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
He's a comic genius, a TV regular behind some of
our favorite shows. He's also the host of Have Been
Paying Attention But the Cheap Seats. He's part of Working
Dog bringing some of Australia's favorite films and productions. We're
talking about Tom Gleisner and he never likes to sit still.
He's written a new musical called Bloom that had an
incredible run in Melbourne and now it's coming to Sydney.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Tom High, lovely to see you. It's great to see you,
got to have you in the studio. It's a big deal.
Speaker 3 (00:31):
And on a birthday date.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
While it is indeed, I haven't got a gift.
Speaker 3 (00:36):
I've got a gift boucher have you? Does that count?
Speaker 1 (00:38):
It's certainly if it's a b WS. Isn't a handwritten
gift to Tom.
Speaker 3 (00:43):
It's yet to be purchased, but it's an aspirational thing.
Come on your way.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
Well, thank you. I appreciate it. Talking about getting older.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
Tell us about Bloom because I know that there's an
age element in this.
Speaker 3 (00:54):
Yes it is. In fact, it's a musical set almost
entirely in an aged care home. And that will come
as a little surprise to you that I've spent a
few bit of time in that world over recent years,
not quite as a resident yet, but parents, parents and
parents in law, so a lot of visits, and over
a lot of time, I've sort of come to get
(01:15):
to know that world and meet the fascinating people that inhabited,
both both residents and the cares. And residents we tend
to sort of walk past them and we're guilty of
looking at people who maybe don't have that much to say,
and they're parked in front of an Andre Reu DVD
playing on loop and you go, that's that's just not right.
(01:37):
And yeah, it was as so as I say, it's
a world that I've been familiar with that I read
this story about a nursing home in the Netherlands that
were offering free accommodation to students if they were willing
to come in and work as cares, and I thought,
that's the idea for something, And as it turned out,
it's a musical called Bloom.
Speaker 2 (01:57):
I really was taken by this sentence one of the
media press release for Bloom. Too often, when older characters
appear in the script, they're trivialized or worse, treated as
punchlines to someone else's joke. This was something else determined
to avoid in writing Bloom. Our residents are very every
bit as real, funny and floored as a younger staff.
You take care of them, and I think this is
the last ageism. We no longer tolerate sexism, racism, but agism.
(02:20):
People just feel they can go for it.
Speaker 3 (02:21):
Absolutely, it is exactly, it's it's the last pastion. So
the actors that play the residents in Bloom are very
much as much part of the story as the younger performers,
and it's fantastic having genuinely older people. I was determined
that I didn't want someone who's fifty putting on a
gray wig and pretending to be ancient. So we've got
We've got beforeman saying John Waters.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
For brilliant love him.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
I think he's definitely north of seventy. And so they're
actually maybe not quite in they're in that band where
you could theoretically be going into care. So yeah, it's
been really really exciting to see to bring younger performers
and older on stage. It look, it's a it's a
it's a funny show beautiful music Lane is with ramps.
Speaker 4 (03:08):
But it's a great idea that that could work in
the like in real life everyone's talking about the high
housing affordability. You get young people to move into an
old folks home and like, you know, just keep them company.
Speaker 1 (03:19):
And you know, you don't have to wash bums or anything.
Speaker 3 (03:21):
You just like, you know, unless you choice of your own.
Speaker 4 (03:26):
And that's if you're there for the bum washing, but
just to get the company, because I find I spent
a lot of time. I took up sailing with these
old blokes and the only thing older than the boat
is the guys on the butt, And you'd be you
spent a lot of time when there was one guy, George,
and he one day we're just talking to us, and
it's that like that time I rode from Perth to
Sydney and on a motor bike goes no want to
(03:47):
push by? And did you have a backup crew? Did
you No? I just went with my mate. We rode
from Perth to Sydney. I went what you had no
backup crew? You went across a nuther board plane? Did
you tell anyone not?
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Nah? That's that age group. They're not boasters. We are
if we do it, even the mildest of the chief
about I'll get a t shirt.
Speaker 4 (04:06):
Mate, there's a tattoo.
Speaker 1 (04:08):
And first, we.
Speaker 2 (04:09):
Have cares in our house now with Harley's health and
they're not there all the time. But I've got a
photo of both of us when we were younger, particularly Harley,
so that you think he is who he is. Don't
judge the person you see.
Speaker 3 (04:21):
That just because they maybe don't say much doesn't mean that.
Speaker 1 (04:25):
They're not ticking over and have under the contribute.
Speaker 3 (04:28):
So yeah, that's that's exactly what we wanted to capture
with zoom.
Speaker 4 (04:32):
And will you be saying this to Sam Pang? When
have you been paying attention?
Speaker 3 (04:35):
He hasn't you?
Speaker 1 (04:36):
About your your age ages? And Sam ages in Sam?
Speaker 3 (04:40):
I think Sam was the very first person I told
that I was writing a musical is probably you know,
a decade ago. And then of course the follow up
was out and it's set in an age home. Of
course I opened my ritually.
Speaker 4 (04:54):
I'm sure, Well, Tom, it's great.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
I can't wait to see coming into the studio.
Speaker 4 (04:59):
You can check this out at the Sydney The Sydney
Premier of stc Rosalind's packet theater check out Bloom Tommy. Guys,
you know it's always great to catch up with you.
Speaker 3 (05:07):
Lovely to see you, Nice to see you.
And Amanda jam Nation. The next guest is Well.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
He's a comic genius, a TV regular behind some of
our favorite shows. He's also the host of Have Been
Paying Attention But the Cheap Seats. He's part of Working
Dog bringing some of Australia's favorite films and productions. We're
talking about Tom Gleisner and he never likes to sit still.
He's written a new musical called Bloom that had an
incredible run in Melbourne and now it's coming to Sydney.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Tom High, lovely to see you. It's great to see you,
got to have you in the studio. It's a big deal.
Speaker 3 (00:31):
And on a birthday date.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
While it is indeed, I haven't got a gift.
Speaker 3 (00:36):
I've got a gift boucher have you? Does that count?
Speaker 1 (00:38):
It's certainly if it's a b WS. Isn't a handwritten
gift to Tom.
Speaker 3 (00:43):
It's yet to be purchased, but it's an aspirational thing.
Come on your way.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
Well, thank you. I appreciate it. Talking about getting older.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
Tell us about Bloom because I know that there's an
age element in this.
Speaker 3 (00:54):
Yes it is. In fact, it's a musical set almost
entirely in an aged care home. And that will come
as a little surprise to you that I've spent a
few bit of time in that world over recent years,
not quite as a resident yet, but parents, parents and
parents in law, so a lot of visits, and over
a lot of time, I've sort of come to get
(01:15):
to know that world and meet the fascinating people that inhabited,
both both residents and the cares. And residents we tend
to sort of walk past them and we're guilty of
looking at people who maybe don't have that much to say,
and they're parked in front of an Andre Reu DVD
playing on loop and you go, that's that's just not right.
(01:37):
And yeah, it was as so as I say, it's
a world that I've been familiar with that I read
this story about a nursing home in the Netherlands that
were offering free accommodation to students if they were willing
to come in and work as cares, and I thought,
that's the idea for something, And as it turned out,
it's a musical called Bloom.
Speaker 2 (01:57):
I really was taken by this sentence one of the
media press release for Bloom. Too often, when older characters
appear in the script, they're trivialized or worse, treated as
punchlines to someone else's joke. This was something else determined
to avoid in writing Bloom. Our residents are very every
bit as real, funny and floored as a younger staff.
You take care of them, and I think this is
the last ageism. We no longer tolerate sexism, racism, but agism.
(02:20):
People just feel they can go for it.
Speaker 3 (02:21):
Absolutely, it is exactly, it's it's the last pastion. So
the actors that play the residents in Bloom are very
much as much part of the story as the younger performers,
and it's fantastic having genuinely older people. I was determined
that I didn't want someone who's fifty putting on a
gray wig and pretending to be ancient. So we've got
We've got beforeman saying John Waters.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
For brilliant love him.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
I think he's definitely north of seventy. And so they're
actually maybe not quite in they're in that band where
you could theoretically be going into care. So yeah, it's
been really really exciting to see to bring younger performers
and older on stage. It look, it's a it's a
it's a funny show beautiful music Lane is with ramps.
Speaker 4 (03:08):
But it's a great idea that that could work in
the like in real life everyone's talking about the high
housing affordability. You get young people to move into an
old folks home and like, you know, just keep them company.
Speaker 1 (03:19):
And you know, you don't have to wash bums or anything.
Speaker 3 (03:21):
You just like, you know, unless you choice of your own.
Speaker 4 (03:26):
And that's if you're there for the bum washing, but
just to get the company, because I find I spent
a lot of time. I took up sailing with these
old blokes and the only thing older than the boat
is the guys on the butt, And you'd be you
spent a lot of time when there was one guy, George,
and he one day we're just talking to us, and
it's that like that time I rode from Perth to
Sydney and on a motor bike goes no want to
(03:47):
push by? And did you have a backup crew? Did
you No? I just went with my mate. We rode
from Perth to Sydney. I went what you had no
backup crew? You went across a nuther board plane? Did
you tell anyone not?
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Nah? That's that age group. They're not boasters. We are
if we do it, even the mildest of the chief
about I'll get a t shirt.
Speaker 4 (04:06):
Mate, there's a tattoo.
Speaker 1 (04:08):
And first, we.
Speaker 2 (04:09):
Have cares in our house now with Harley's health and
they're not there all the time. But I've got a
photo of both of us when we were younger, particularly Harley,
so that you think he is who he is. Don't
judge the person you see.
Speaker 3 (04:21):
That just because they maybe don't say much doesn't mean that.
Speaker 1 (04:25):
They're not ticking over and have under the contribute.
Speaker 3 (04:28):
So yeah, that's that's exactly what we wanted to capture
with zoom.
Speaker 4 (04:32):
And will you be saying this to Sam Pang? When
have you been paying attention?
Speaker 3 (04:35):
He hasn't you?
Speaker 1 (04:36):
About your your age ages? And Sam ages in Sam?
Speaker 3 (04:40):
I think Sam was the very first person I told
that I was writing a musical is probably you know,
a decade ago. And then of course the follow up
was out and it's set in an age home. Of
course I opened my ritually.
Speaker 4 (04:54):
I'm sure, Well, Tom, it's great.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
I can't wait to see coming into the studio.
Speaker 4 (04:59):
You can check this out at the Sydney The Sydney
Premier of stc Rosalind's packet theater check out Bloom Tommy. Guys,
you know it's always great to catch up with you.
Speaker 3 (05:07):
Lovely to see you, Nice to see you.
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