Katherine actor-musician Barlang Lewis dies
Katherine Times
By Chris McLennan
May 11, 2018
Prominent Katherine actor-musician Barlang Lewis has died
overnight.
The Arnhem Land-born actor burst onto the entertainment scene for his
role in the 1970’s movie ‘The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith’.
Mr Lewis was named a finalist in the NT Australian of the
Year in 2016.
From Jimmie Blacksmith to King Lear, Mr Lewis delivered
critically-acclaimed and thought-provoking acting performances during his
40-year career.
Born in Ngukurr on the banks of the Roper River in South
Eastern Arnhem land, Balang is the son of a Welsh father and an Indigenous
mother.
Brought up traditionally, he left school at 12, working
as a bricklayer and stockman before he was discovered for the role of Jimmy
Blacksmith while waiting at an airport.
His documentary film, Yellow Fella, is an exploration of
his mixed race heritage, and was the first Australian Indigenous documentary
selected to screen at the Cannes Film Festival.
Mr Lewis’ retelling of Shakespeare’s King Lear transformed
the mad king into an Aboriginal elder, challenging Australians to examine
Indigenous culture in new ways.
A unique singer-songwriter, Mr Lewis pioneered the use of
didjeridu in contemporary music, and runs an arts centre and cultural festival
called Walking with Spirits.
Most recently he won the best actor prize (international)
at this month’s Canberra Short Film Festival for the three-minute UK-produced
film “They Live in Forests, They are Extremely Shy”.
The short film tells the fictionalised story of an
Indigenous Australian man invited to London for the Colonial Exhibition of
1886.
Out of respect, Mr Lewis’ family has asked he be referred
to with his traditional name.
LEWIS, Tom E (Barlang
Lewis)
Born: 8/25/1958,
Ngukurr, Northern Territory, Australia
Died: 5/10/2018,
Katherine, Northern Territory, Australia
Tom E. Lewis’
westerns – actor:
Robbery Under Arms – 1985 (Warrigal)
The Proposition – 2005 (Two Bob)
Red Hill – 2010 (Jimmy Conway)
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