The Australia festival, which runs June 11-26, will present Maltby and Shire's new musical in a concert setting June 25 at the Dunstan Playhouse. According to production notes, the New York-bound Take Flight is about "the spirit of invention in us all, the obscure as well as the famous, and that it is just as noble in those who fail as in those who succeed. It is about flying, about the invention of the airplane, about creativity, and about the human need to take risks."

Songs from Take Flight have been presented in the States at Charlotte Rep and the Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center. Among the performers who have interpreted tunes from the musical include Daniel Jenkins, Clarke Thorell, Christiane Noll, Alan Campbell, Brent Barrett, Meg Tolin, John Jellison and Ann Arvia. The Down Under production will include several Australian musical theatre stars as well as the 20-strong Adelaide Art Orchestra and a 10-voice chorus.

Maltby and Shire will figure prominently in this year's cabaret festival. In addition to the Take Flight concert, the festival will also offer their hit revue Closer Than Ever June 19, "An Afternoon with Maltby & Shire" June 20 and a "Master Class" June 26.

Maltby and Shire are the songwriters whose urbane Off-Broadway revues, Starting Here, Starting Now and Closer Than Ever, are beloved by fans of the form. Cabaret singers have plucked songs from the shows to present in nightspots around the world. Maltby and Shire also collaborated on the book musicals Baby and big. Baby is currently being presented at New Jersey's Paper Mill Playhouse with a cast led by Michael Rupert, Carolee Carmello, Norm Lewis, La Chanze, Moeisha McGill and Chad Kimball.

Shire has scored motion pictures ("Norma Rae"), and Maltby conceived and staged Aint' Misbehavin' and contributed lyrics to Miss Saigon. Maltby co-directed the Tony Award-winning Fosse. For more information, visit www.adelaidecabaret.com.