Volunteers
Applications are open - we need more Tuppences and Tommies!
Volunteers are the life blood of arts and cultural festivals. TAF2019 will only be possible with the assistance of a number of volunteers in a range of capacities.
As a TAF2019 Murder She Wrote volunteer you’ll have fantastic opportunities to gain new experiences, make new friends and be part of the team delivering a criminally good time for hundreds of book lovers.
Whatever your skill level or experience we’ll have a role for you - before, during or after the festival.
Whether you can offer 4 hours, 8 hours, 12 hours or more, once applications open we’d like to hear from you!
What Would I Be Doing?
From artist care to venue support, our volunteer roles offer a behind-the-scenes look at delivering an exciting new arts event in beautiful Cygnet, Tasmania.
Some volunteers may:
- housekeep for workshops, masterclasses and/or panel sessions,
- provide support to authors and panellists,
- be involved in ticketing, transport, staging panels or parties, managing crowds or festival book events such as signings and launches.
We also need a small team of slashies - performer/improv/dancers - to help record the festival for posterity.
Each of the volunteer roles are detailed here (click through).
What Do I Get in Return?
In return for their hours - in addition to our undying gratitude - volunteers will be well-looked after in our Volunteer Green Room before and after each shift.
For new volunteers: Tommy/Tuppence and other new volunteers (ushers, ticketing, bookstall, set-up and pull-down crews, players in our Murder Mystery Dinner game) who help us for 12 hours from Wed 30 Oct to Sun 3 Nov can choose a panel session to attend as a festival VIP guest, i.e., be seated in the same section as our panellists and other VIPs.
Existing general volunteers who qualified for a T-shirt may swap to a free panel session instead if they wish - just email us.
Seating strictly limited in each session, so it’s first in best dressed.
We hope to form a core team of volunteers this year who become our Repeat Offenders in 2021.
Volunteer Roles
Each of the volunteer roles are detailed here (click through). Please look through them carefully before deciding which roles you might be suitable for.
You can nominate a single role, multiple roles, or opt to be available to help out on any task at certain times. Some roles may be shared, especially if they run over the course of the festival.
When it’s time to apply, you’ll need to let us know where you are located, what you would like to do, how many hours you can offer and if you have any relevant experience.
Festival Management and Communications
Are you a Marple or Poirot?
These two world-famous detectives need no introduction!
Festival Librarians
Are you an Ariadne Oliver?
Ariadne Oliver is Poirot’s writer friend – which we think is a rather fitting match for our book herders.
Festival Production
Are you a Madeleine de Sara?
Madeleine de Sara is a consummate disguise artist in Agatha Christie’s world of Parker Pyne.
Final Festival Preparations
Are you a Parker Pyne?
Parker Pyne is another of Agatha Christie’s leading detectives – solid, comforting and dependable.
Volunteer Team Leaders
Are you a DCI James Harold Japp?
The Detective Chief Inspector from Scotland Yard, indispensable foil to Poirot, takes charge of every scene he walks into.
Festival First Aid Officers
Are you a Doctor Haydock?
The country medic in Miss Marple’s village of St. Mary Mead treated a range of sudden illnesses.
General Festival Volunteers
Are you a Tommy or Tuppence Beresford?
We need plenty of these plucky, never-say-die adventurers who feature in their own Agatha Christie series.
Festival Chauffeurs
Are you an Antonio Foscarelli?
Antonio Foscarelli, suspect chauffeur in Murder on the Orient Express, always delivered his passengers safely.
Festival Slashies
(dancer/actor/performer)
Are you a Harley Quin?
Agatha Christie so loved the mysterious Harley Quin he was the only character she dedicated a book to.
Each of the volunteer roles are detailed here (click through).
The Fine Print
Volunteer Induction and Welcome
Information and training sessions will be held for all volunteers.
Most of this can be done online, but all volunteers will be required to attend our pre-festival induction session in Cygnet on the afternoon of Wednesday 30 October 2019, followed by a welcome event for all volunteers, panellists and children’s authors.
Volunteer Uniform
All volunteers working from 31 October to 3 November will be asked to wear a uniform at all times when on shift.
The uniform consists of:
a) your own clothes, all black, whatever you already own and feel comfortable in (black only, though please), and
b) an open overshirt that will be provided, which will be a white button down shirt covered in ‘blood spatters’. This can be worn open or closed, sleeves up or down. The aim is to make you visible as a volunteer.
Volunteer Green Room
Volunteers working from 31 October to 3 November will have access to the Volunteer Green Room before and after each shift, including food and beverages.
We want you to feel hale, hearty and well-rested between shifts!
Volunteer Checks and Insurance
All volunteers will be required to complete a Working With Vulnerable People (WWVP) check and may be asked to complete various first aid, health and safety and other training.
It is important to note that if a volunteer has started their application before the festival, this may be acceptable. The application number will be required, and a photo of the completed card when it comes through for our records.
You can apply for a Tasmanian WWVP from anywhere. Please note that the process can take 4 weeks or longer in Tasmania.
When applying, the category you need to choose is here (click to view).
When applying, the volunteer organisation details you need to enter are here (click to view).
The card will be relevant to many other volunteer positions you may apply for in future.
All volunteers will be engaged through an Auspicious Arts Project Inc. volunteer agreement to ensure they are covered by AAP’s volunteer and public liability insurance.