'Doctor Frankenstein is a childless woman, a scientist obsessed with becoming a mother. One night she succeeds in her experiments and sparks life into a monstrous creature – a miraculous conception. Has Frankenstein taken things too far, to a place where the violent need to procreate has upset the balance of nature itself?
Looking back to a classic to see into the future, THE RABBLE’s mutated tale / transcends nature.'
Source: Malthouse Theatre.
Produced by The Rabble, presented at Malthouse Theatre in 2014.
Director: Emma Valente
Set & Costume Design: Kate Davis
Lighting & Sound Design: Emma Valente
Featuring: Jane Montgomery Griffiths, Emily Milledge, Dana Miltins, David Paterson & Mary Helen Sassman
Stage Manager/Sound Operator: Jenn Taylor
Lighting Operator: Stewart Birkinshaw Campbell
Stage Management Secondment: Stephanie Dimitriou
Photography: Guy Little
Performed at Beckett Theatre 21 March - 5 April 2014.
'This book examines sexuality, gender and race in Australia’s vibrant independent theatre and performance culture. It analyses selected feminist and queer performances that interrogate the cultural construction of sexuality and gender, challenge the normative trends of mainstream Australian society and culture and open up spaces for alternative representations of gender identity and sexual expression. Offering the first full-length study on sexuality and gender in Australian theatre since 2005, this book reveals a resurgence of feminist themes in independent performance and explores the intersection of feminist and queer politics. Ranging across drag, burlesque, cabaret, theatre and performance art, the book provides an accessible and engaging account of some of the most innovative, entertaining and politically subversive Australian theatrical works from the past decade.'
Source: Publisher's blurb.
'In 2013 adaptation was perhaps the most contested and controversial topic in Australian theatre. A series of heated debates erupted in the media following two provocative articles by Rosemary Neill published in The Australian in late May, which suggested that as a result of the recent adaptation 'fad', the voices of Australian playwrights were being 'swept off the stage'. As these articles highlight, there is a cultural trend towards adaptation on the Australian stages. A range of leading independent theatre companies including 'The Rabble', 'The Hayloft Project', 'The Daniel Schlusser Ensemble', and 'Fraught Outfit' work largely, or solely, in the area of adaptation. Meanwhile, adaptations of the classics have become increasingly more prominent on the main stages at Melbourne Theatre Company (MTC) and Sydney Theatre Company (STC), especially from a series of young directors. The articles in The Australian incited extensive arguments in the press, social media, online forums and public panel discussions that revealed a great deal of cultural anxiety surrounding the issues of intellectual property, the perceived 'death of the author' and the shifting focus of Australian theatre.'
Source: Author's abstract.
'This book examines sexuality, gender and race in Australia’s vibrant independent theatre and performance culture. It analyses selected feminist and queer performances that interrogate the cultural construction of sexuality and gender, challenge the normative trends of mainstream Australian society and culture and open up spaces for alternative representations of gender identity and sexual expression. Offering the first full-length study on sexuality and gender in Australian theatre since 2005, this book reveals a resurgence of feminist themes in independent performance and explores the intersection of feminist and queer politics. Ranging across drag, burlesque, cabaret, theatre and performance art, the book provides an accessible and engaging account of some of the most innovative, entertaining and politically subversive Australian theatrical works from the past decade.'
Source: Publisher's blurb.
'In 2013 adaptation was perhaps the most contested and controversial topic in Australian theatre. A series of heated debates erupted in the media following two provocative articles by Rosemary Neill published in The Australian in late May, which suggested that as a result of the recent adaptation 'fad', the voices of Australian playwrights were being 'swept off the stage'. As these articles highlight, there is a cultural trend towards adaptation on the Australian stages. A range of leading independent theatre companies including 'The Rabble', 'The Hayloft Project', 'The Daniel Schlusser Ensemble', and 'Fraught Outfit' work largely, or solely, in the area of adaptation. Meanwhile, adaptations of the classics have become increasingly more prominent on the main stages at Melbourne Theatre Company (MTC) and Sydney Theatre Company (STC), especially from a series of young directors. The articles in The Australian incited extensive arguments in the press, social media, online forums and public panel discussions that revealed a great deal of cultural anxiety surrounding the issues of intellectual property, the perceived 'death of the author' and the shifting focus of Australian theatre.'
Source: Author's abstract.