An audience of hundreds gathered in the outdoor amphitheatre at Albany’s Historic Whaling Station on Saturday night to watch a cast of talented young performers in Kaarla Wirren.

The one-night-only performance told the story of the fire spirit, and was the brainchild of Noongar elder Carol Pettersen.

Southern Edge Arts creative director Annette Carmichael told the gathered crowd the youth theatre organisation had been looking for a way to be a “meaningful” and “impactful” part of the Albany 2026 program of events.

She said as soon as Ms Pettersen walked through the door to propose a collaborative project, she knew this was the group’s opportunity.

Menang elder Lester Coyne performed the welcome to country, and director Rachael Colmer spoke about the months of hard work that went into bringing the final show together.

She said she hoped to create a unique contribution to Albany’s bicentenary program of events that involved Noongar history alongside ideas from talented young performers, including many who had never been involved in a show before Kaarla Wirren.

Ms Colmer led a large ensemble cast of young performers to create a moving performance that included dance, storytelling, and whirling fire to tell the story of the Noongar people’s long relationship with fire and country, and how colonisation affected that relationship.

The performance ended on a hopeful note, showing the audience how Noongar people were carrying the flame of their culture for future generations.

Families drove out to the amphitheatre armed with picnic blankets, chairs, and warm clothes, with a large crowd filling the grass amphitheatre despite showers arriving just before the performance was due to start.

Cheers and applause interspersed the performance as family members and friends in the audience cheered on the performers, and the applause was deafening as the entire cast came out for the final dance number and bows.