For this issue of Feurieu Living Magazine they asked 2015 Tatachilla Lutheran College graduate, Annabel Bowles, to interview and write a story about a talented fellow student. Annabel is currently studying Journalism at Uni SA.

Meet Mia Reschke, a 17-year-old artistic powerhouse from Tatachilla Lutheran College. An actor, singer, songwriter and composer all-inone, she’s the Fleurieu’s very own Julie Andrews. I was mesmerised by her performances in musicals at Tatachilla’s chapels and when I was asked to write about a talented student, Mia immediately came to mind. She has recently landed the lead role in the College’s upcoming musical Mary Poppins, which will be held at the Hopgood Theatre in May.

Mia spent her first few years living around the corner from the iconic Thebarton Theatre and was raised in an environment that fostered her creative expression. Music filled the household and I’m told that Mia could sing before she could talk and always loved dressing up in trinkets and costumes. It wouldn’t surprise me if she arrived in the world twirling and crooning a ballad.

Mia’s parents Peter and Jo Reschke, regularly took Mia and her older brother Oliver to live theatre shows and concerts. Since her family moved to McLaren Flat eleven years ago, Mia’s talents have been further nurtured and developed.

Mia is a diverse performer, who adopts different identities for her two main creative endeavours; theatre performance and folk music. Mia Reschke the theatre performer is vibrant, bold and exciting and has been seen by thousands. Mia Carmen is an acoustic singer/songwriter, who is soft, mellow, tranquil and yet to be discovered.

Mia’s first stage appearance was in a McLaren Vale Primary School musical. Later, talent school Onkaparinga Sing Stars set her on the path to being cast in the lead role of Annie in Tatachilla’s Annie Get Your Gun musical in 2015. Her stellar performances captivated the audience and scored her solo gigs at that year’s Harvest Festival and Almond Blossom Festival.

As I jot down these accomplishments, as well as a string of other performances and musical groups Mia has been a part of, she humbly states that without her teachers she wouldn’t be the performer she is today. She says Tatachilla provides her with fantastic opportunities to pursue her love of the arts and therefore is ‘the perfect school’ for her. Mia has an immense year ahead of her. She is studying Year 12 Music, Drama, English and Art and is also taking part in the Adelaide Cabaret Festival’s ‘Class of Cabaret’. The semester long program will be her professional debut. 

When the curtain’s drawn and the show’s over, Mia relaxes by writing, singing and recording music. All of her own music is produced in her bedroom, offering a genuine and authentic insight into her soulful personality. Mia writes purely as a form of expression, without an audience in mind, granting herself the freedom to create authentically and wholly.

Mia focuses on melancholic melodies and strong ballads. She finds inspiration in Angus and Julia Stone, Nick Murphy (aka. Chet Faker) and Matt Corby. Her song ‘Sunday Calls’, released shortly before Matt Corby’s ‘Monday’, shares an uncanny resemblance, not only in name but in tune and its ‘a cappella’ style. Mia jokes: ‘He stole my song’.

Although Mia rarely promotes her music, all of her songs, including her album ‘Along Side You,’ can be found on the audio platform SoundCloud. Treat yourself and listen to it on a balmy evening.

Creativity and flair clearly run through Mia’s blood. Her father Peter Reschke is the Head Chef at d’Arry’s Verandah Restaurant in McLaren Vale. Her ability to connect with people likely comes from her mother Jo Reschke, who is d’Arry’s maître d’. Both parents are extremely proud and supportive of Mia and have set the standard of a strong work ethic.

Mia’s list of creative interests doesn’t end at singing and performing. In her limited spare time she loves baking, painting, crocheting and making a variety of handcrafts from earrings to dog collars to Christmas wreaths. She particularly loves anything vintage, and is rarely adorned in something that hasn’t been found in an op shop.

The self-confessed ‘artsy wannabe,’ surpasses a level of ‘artsy’ that many of us can only dream of. At just the beginning of her senior high school year, she has a maturity and confidence well beyond her age. She is Mia Reschke and you’ll want to keep an eye out for her on Broadway one day.

Read the full article in the Autumn edition of Fleurieu Living Magazine - on shelves now. 

Photograph by Angela Lisman.