The ambience is everything in this production. We warm ourselves on red wine in the courtyard foyer, as we wait to be welcomed inside the chapel itself. As an audience we seek permission to enter the space, hope to be taken somewhere new and seek refuge in a tale from the past. The scene is set for an historic look at the beginnings of modernism and Faust’s ageless story.

The Soldier’s Tale dates back to the First World War. This context provides a rich and dark undercurrent to the drama. Stravinsky was on the cusp of his potential when he took a libretto from Swiss poet C F Ramuz and combined it with his own composition for seven musicians. With the dance movement added it became an impoverished opera of its day; eclectic, de-constructed and highly modern. This is an ideal work to reflect the strength of Melbourne’s booming independent theatre scene.

The Hayloft Project # 3 has brought together artists from an astonishing variety of companies. The MTC, Black Lung, Chunky Moves and the MSO echo through the walls and rafters of the Sacred Heart Chapel. And as the music and text unfold the narrative, they compete and play against each other to create a cohesive whole.

Mark Winter plays the Soldier and his disturbing entrance at the beginning chronicles a meeting with David Whitely’s Devil. The soldier’s only possession is a violin with a soul and it represents his chance to escape an unclear past and re-invent the future. The devil may hold the book of grand ideas, but will it make the soldier any wiser? He makes the swap and be damned with the consequences. This leads him down an uncertain pathway where troubled princesses lurk. But a new dawn is always better than one just gone. It is, of course, the perfect analogy for contemporary art.

The strength of the artists that have come together under the auspices of Simon Stone (founder of the Hayloft Project) and Fabian Russell (founder of the Orchestra Project) are clear. Bonnie Paskas whispers and wisps as the Princess while Frank Gallacher rumbles as the Narrator.

And the violist, percussionist and trumpeter combine with the clarinet, trombone, double bass and bassoon players to re-create the pre-jazz fusion found in this complex, succinct piece. It’s a classical work that was trying to break out of its 19th century shell. It may lack polish but that’s because it sat on the edge and led the way.

In the Hayloft Project we have this process in reverse, with a company that is trying to break out of current trends in independent theatre by returning to classic works. This can create inherent problems as artists and audience members grapple with the value of the process.

But just as galleries draw together exhibitions to give us a mixed insight into the evolution of fine art so should theatre. The staging of The Soldier’s Tale gives us rare insight and any flaws in its structure and production are far out-weighed by the feelings that come from discovering our theatrical past.