Cirrus@Austlit

'A bleak black comedy about the end of a relationship.

'The Platypus is a strange creature. It’s composed of odds and ends, as though Evolution got tired one afternoon and stopped paying attention to what it was doing. It seems wrong. Strangely put together. A curiosity.

'Just like this play.

'This play is about Richard and Jessica. About the messy ending of their relationship and whether they can put the pieces back together. Multiple genres, two actors, one audience… and possibly a platypus.

'Written and directed by well-known Australian actor Francis Greenslade (Shaun Micallef’s Mad as Hell, Winners and Losers, The Odd Couple, Shakespeare in Love) and performed by John Leary (The Good Place, Glitch, The Letdown, Upper Middle Bogan) and Rebecca Bower (The Spooky Files, Offspring, Wentworth), The Platypus brings together an outstanding team of cast and creatives.' (Production summary)

'Moving the story from its original Norwegian setting to the heat and dust of the Victorian bush in the late nineteenth century, this re-imagining of the Ibsen classic promises to viscerally confront a contemporary Australian audience with the repressed truths of intergenerational illness and trauma.

'We follow Mrs Alving as she tries to shield her son, Oswald, from the truth of their family’s past. But as ghostly secrets unravel, she is forced to confront the reality of their lives, buried under her compulsion to maintain outward propriety and duty. GHOSTS is a journey through the shadows of hidden sins and the quest for truth.'

Source: Theatre Works.

'20-something misfits, Twiglet and Boots, live in a ramshackle house on the outskirts of suburbia, where buildings are just waiting to be gobbled up by developers. As Boots prepares to move out to work for their mum’s company, the pair is determined to make the most of summer while they can. But with an old Possum marrying their lemon tree, a vagabond Cowgirl officiating the ceremony, and a Vulture circling the property, things are bound to get interesting…

'Incorporating elements of music, poetry, ritual and revelry, ‘Lemon Tree on Dreg Street’ is a heart-on-its-sleeve ode to those who slip through the cracks, a love letter to the places we make sacred, and a celebration of the deep human need for belonging. Written by Amy May Nunn and directed by Miranda Middleton, it will welcome audiences into a community of oddball characters and invite them to participate in a wedding like no other.'

'A man returns to his broken city from a devastating war. He brings home a vision of the end of the world. In the middle of the banalities of everyday life and political expediency, events converge on a violent act of betrayal. Prophet explores lovers, mothers, sons, fathers and politics in the end times.'

Source: Theatre Works.

'As Australia engages with the proposed Indigenous Voice to Parliament, Theatre Works is proud to present the inspiring and energising work, FACING UP by Lynden Nicholls.

'This powerful production explores Australian Federal policy and attitudes towards First Nations people from federation to the present, delving into both the official history and the rarely acknowledged Indigenous protest. The Indigenous Voice to Parliament, a proposed constitutional amendment, seeks to establish an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice. If approved, this Voice would advise the Australian Parliament and government on matters relating to the social, spiritual, and economic wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

'The Voice to Parliament proposal highlights the need for better representation and consultation with First Nations people, making FACING UP an eerily timely and pertinent production.

'FACING UP by Lynden Nicholls combines historical records and personal stories to create a compelling theatrical experience. The play presents familiar events, such as the 1967 referendum, the enquiry into Aboriginal deaths in custody, and the Tent Embassy, while also revealing lesser-known, powerful moments that evoke a sense of urgency for change and progress.'

Source: Theatre Works.

'Upcoming playwright, Laura Jackson has penned a touching and relevant two-hander play called The Culture. Set in Sydney Australia, it's story of deep and enduring friendship, and the pitfalls… and sometimes dangers of finding love in a modern world. Audiences are welcomed into Will and Katie’s living room and into an important wider conversation.'

Source: Theatre Works.

'John Everyman has been gifted a dog - an unwelcome intrusion into an otherwise ordered life. But the demands of ‘owning’ one lead that life in directions he hadn’t anticipated. In a compellingly human story that ranges from slapstick through to pathos (and all stops between), this gentle yet moving reflection on the meaning of life and love will send you out into the night with a sense of having journeyed to the heart of what it is to be human.

'‘Everyman & His Dog’ was inspired, somewhat obviously, by the expression itself which, like most idiomatic expressions, can be contracted to just one word: Everyone.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'26-year-old Ally Morgan is determined to save the world from climate change. How does she plan to do it? Through the power of THEATRE! The only problem is that she’s so anxious about climate change that she can’t actually write the life-changing show that will save the world through the power of theatre… See the problem?

'So, when Ally finally books in to see a psychologist and a guided meditation miraculously transports her to a real-life theatre in front of YOU, she’s got no choice but to devise a one-woman show on the spot - right here, right now!

'‘Not Today’ is a frank and funny trip inside the mind of an anxious millennial on a mission. Armed with her army of instruments and entirely original score, Ally may not quite save the world, but she’ll sure put on one heck of a show.

'“We are here, and we will die someday, but not today.”'

Source: Theatre Works.

'November 23rd, 1963. The day after President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, a young girl scout is killed in a suburban street while walking home. A B-list celebrity, a questionable counselor, a blue-collar worker and a housewife are taken to the local cop shop to await questioning. A character comedy in a groovy 1960’s dreamscape. Grab your prawn cocktails, sit back on your vinyl chair and welcome to purgatory!

'RING, RING! expands on the concepts of isolation, purgatory, and “staying apart keeps us together” to present a piece that is socially distanced and intimate simultaneously. The audience is invited to join the characters in a wild romp through the darkest recesses of their mind as they try to navigate through their “new normal” and attempt to bring a sense of normalcy back into their lives. The show brings together an amalgamation of technologies including filmmaking, sound design and choreography, discarding traditional theatre practices to assist in dissecting the concepts of modern humanity and how we create intimacy in the digital world.'

Source: Theatre Works.

'Stars in his eyes, a derelict ageing twink moves to London on a theatrical whim. Chaos ensues, his life becoming an intoxicating vortex of sex, drugs and deceit.

'His gateway to this treacherous world is the mysterious PC, an international man of mystery, a money launderer and a fraud. He promises fame but delivers breakdown.

'Meanwhile the people are revolting, on a scale we’ve never witnessed before, and it is his relationship with Nick, the young revolutionary, that just might save him.'

Source: Theatre Works.

'Born from the strange socio-political moment we’re living in, VERY NICE POT PLANTS TO PURIFY THE AIR AND ENRICH YOUR LIFE (henceforth referred to as POT PLANTS) is an absurd, psychedelic comedy about connection and interdependence. Join a few humans and many living pot plants on a wild ride back in time to the days of disco, free love and booty shorts. Here you’ll meet Anne, a scientist trying to prove plants can talk. With lots of big hair and irreverent dance numbers, you won’t want to miss this new Australian work from emerging, already award-winning makers.'

Source: Theatre Works.

'Elizabeth is young at heart and filled with imagination. When all that she loves is put in danger, the most mystical of opportunities presents itself, taking her on a journey filled with madness, fantastical whimsy, self discovery and coming to terms with what it means to be human. 

'THE HOUSE ON FIRE AT THE EDGE OF THE WORLD is a breathtaking new Australian ambient rock musical, interwoven with the beating heart of contemporary folk music. Live music, dance and a dazzlingly suspicious upside down kingdom take centre stage in this captivating live experience that will take you to another world and back.

'Inspired by musicals such as ‘Hadestown’ and ‘Once,’ THE HOUSE ON FIRE AT THE EDGE OF THE WORLD is experimental music theatre at its most ambitious. Inventive stagecraft, a score that sings of the joy and pain of being human, and inventive storytelling come together to make a fairy tale for our modern time.'

Source: Theatre Works.

'no matter the cost, no matter the consequence.

'“He’d been shoving her around for a while now. I knew that. Sometimes she’d tell me, sometimes not, but I could always tell when they’d had a blue. But she was my girl and sometimes things were better left unsaid.”

'Well-meaning, teenage misfit Millie comes home from work one day to discover her old childhood friend Annie bruised and bloody on her doorstep. Millie picks her up, dusts her off and puts her in the bath. Lying in bed together, the two reminisce on a childhood that occurred a lifetime ago and recall an old promise to care for one other “until the end of the earth, no matter the cost and no matter the consequence.” As Annie sleeps, Millie vows to honour her friend in the one way that seems fair; revenge.

'Set in the outskirts of metropolitan Melbourne, KEROSENE is a relentless and unsympathetic character study exploring the complex, ugly and dangerous symptoms of love. It is a homage to the blind loyalty that accompanies lifelong friendships and the realities of what it means to grow up young, quiet and forgotten in modern day Australia.'

Source: Theatre Works.

'SPOT is an original solo theatre show that explores a contemporary immigrant journey through wicked satire, wild physical comedy and unforgettable characters. Performed by Fabio Motta and co-devised and directed by John Tummino and movement director Zya Kane.

'It’s the story of 8 year old migrant, Mario, and his devilish alter ego ‘Spot’. Mario dreams of becoming a ‘very good English actor’ and one day to even be tackling Shakespeare, but with no grasp of the english language and no one to support his dreams, he’s in a… ‘spot’ of bother!

'SPOT explores through humour the difficulties of trying to find a place to fit in, when all you feel is out of place. The show examines themes of separation trauma, the difficulties of displacement, the language barriers and the deep sense of loss that are an inevitable part of leaving everything you know and love for the hope of a brighter future.

'Based on true events, this story presents the questions of whether Australia really is the inclusive, multicultural place it believes itself to be.'

Source: Theatre Works.

'“Everytime a friend succeeds, I die a little” – Gore Vidal

'Jem, Ella and Harry are friends.

'Best friends.

'Whip-smart underachievers side-eyeing their late twenties, their friendship is fuelled by pop music, gay meme accounts and a healthy cynicism about everyone and everything around them.

'Now Jem is moving to New York. On the eve of his departure, he invites Harry and Ella to his parents’ beach house for a final hurrah. 

'The usual. Cheap wine, expensive pizza, and bad movies.

'But now, Jem’s sudden commitment to his own personal growth threatens to rip apart the delicate threads that have tied them together for years.

'Can they face a world without each other? Or worse – a world where one of them doesn’t need the others?

'Gather the people who know you too well for this hilarious, moving and deeply relatable play LOVE YOU BITCH, about friendship and finding (or losing) your way in the world. You might just not be able to look them in the eye afterwards…'

Source: Theatre Works.

'BETTY is a complex and unfiltered exploration of the Mother/Daughter relationship; revealed at a time when the Mother’s inhibitions are being compromised by her decline into dementia. Although never close, the daughter now finds herself in the challenging position of trying to care for her.

'As we weave through this unpredictable landscape we are brought face to face with the harrowing nature of old age and decline and the urgency this places on the many unanswered questions of the past. The fabric of their relationship is smashed open and within it the trademarks of inherited family trauma, cultural assimilation, loneliness, abuse, blame and misunderstanding are laid bare.

'A harrowing tale of a Mother’s unresolved traumatic childhood and the impact this then has on her daughter and her daughter's choices in life. The script is unapologetic, candid and incredibly humorous. The hilarity adding a much needed contrast to the weight of such loss and tragedy.'

Source: Theatre Works.

'A contemporary neo-noir thriller spanning seven decades and set in the inner suburbs of Melbourne, this August [2021] Theatre Works proudly present The Darkening Sky – the latest premiere work from renowned playwright Richard Murphet.

'Bringing together some of our finest local artists and arts makers, The Darkening Sky interweaves lives from the past and present in a desperate bid to solve the unexplained disappearance of two women.

'In the warm and familiar surrounds of his local café Jamie has managed to build a life of peace and solitude for decades. Now thrust unwillingly into reconstructing troubled memories, his belief in the calm surface his childhood crumbles – surrounded by elements from a past he didn’t even know existed. At the same time a detective is handed a Cold Case involving the disappearance of a young woman in the 1980s. Chasing answers to this mystery unearths a web of political intrigue, violence, and sacrifice.

'Examining a hidden history of Melbourne and featuring well known locations around St. Kilda and other inner suburbs, The Darkening Sky is an electrifying and all engrossing new Australian work. 90 minutes of non-stop action, not to be missed.'

Source: Theatre Works.

'PROPHETX is a spectacle of misfit, a love letter to those whose lives speak truth to authority despite the consequence. It is an epic, surreal and irreverent remix of the story of Tiresias – an ancient outsider, an archetypal other, the genderfluid and queer seer who features in The Bacchae, Oedipus Rex, Antigone and The Odyssey.   

'The Danger Ensemble who are known for their highly visual and physical works further their exploration of contemporary form and modern tragedy with PROPHETX.

'Tiresias’ life spanned seven generations, living as man and woman, counsel to mortals and gods alike, existing in this world and the underworld, both celebrated and punished for knowing and seeing too much.  

'Historically, like many queer figures Tiresias has been merely a supporting character, a dramatic device, and a footnote but PROPHETX positions Tiresias as the central figure in their own drama and asks:

'what is the cost of seeing? 

'what is the pain of knowing? 

'what is the weight of living?'

Source: Theatre Works.

'In the ashes everyone’s been scorched. Family, survival and legacy in the aftermath of disaster. 

'Eva and Lily have returned to the farm following a catastrophic fire season. The family home has burnt to the ground, the fences have melted, the neighbours have fled and the animals have perished. Maggie, the matriarch, is living in a caravan on the blackened earth where the house once stood tending her new vegetable garden and refusing to leave her land. Painful family histories are revealed that force questions and confrontations to the surface. How much can this family ask of one another amidst the ashes?

'Tackling the lived realities of a world increasingly affected by global warming and the impacts on our experiences of family, THE VIEW FROM UP HERE reflects and raises questions about the tapestry of our Australian zeitgeist. This theatrical experience investigates how we might find hope in one another in order to face tomorrow together.'

Source: Theatre Works.

'It’s just a job interview. There’s nothing to be afraid of…

'Job hunting can be a real bitch, huh? Hours spent updating your resume with blatant lies about your employment history, days spent waiting to hear back from potential employers, months spent hoping the perfect job will fall onto your lap without having to really work for it.

'And then you score the job interview! But this isn’t just any job interview. This one is a real killer…

'THE HITMEN follows six unemployed hopefuls as they take part in a group interview with the hope of obtaining the job of their dreams – a Hitman at K.O.C, Australia’s largest professional agency of contract killers and assassins.

'Hilariously disturbing and humorously unhinged, THE HITMEN churns the stomach and tickles the funny bone as it propels the audience through the dark spectrum of human behaviour and corporate governance.'

Source: Theatre Works.