Cirrus@Austlit

'Co-created by Joe Paradise Lui and Merlynn Tong (Golden Blood), LEGENDS draws on the unique talents of many theatre artists from Australia’s Asian diaspora. It’s a powerful, deeply personal examination of the Chinese cultural experience and the enduring power of friendship, revealed through a hilarious yet subtly moving lens.

'Merlynn and Joe are used to fiery clashes – but what old friends aren’t? As they spend a night holding vigil for their dead grandfathers, their conflicting attitudes towards traditional values grow more and more heated. Merlynn wants to preserve the rites of her forebears, while Joe thinks it’s all a load of superstition. But the lords of the Underworld have their own thoughts on all of this, and they’re going to drag our heroes beyond the grave to resolve their differences.'

Source: Melbourne Theatre Company.

'Not your average ghost story 

'Penned and performed by Merlynn Tong (Golden Blood), this larger-than-life musical comedy celebrates the richness of Singaporean culture, while asking universal questions about the complexity of mother-daughter relationships and the healing power of vulnerability.

'It’s a big night for Mandy (Tong), her last ever at the helm of her beloved karaoke bar. To celebrate, she’s hosting a one-night-only mega reunion special! That is until the ghosts of her mother and grandmother show up and Mandy’s best laid plans are foiled. For better or worse, Mandy will need to forge her own future.

'Under the direction of former STC Resident Artist and La Boite Artistic Director, Courtney Stewart (The Poison of Polygamy), and featuring a glorious cast including Kimie Tsukakoshi, and Seong Hui Xuan, Congratulations, Get Rich! will witness three powerful women of very different eras compete, commiserate and confront each other through stories, showmanship, and song (this is karaoke after all).

'Equal parts supernatural spectacular and moving family drama, this historic and international co-production with La Boite Theatre and Singapore Repertory Theatre, will pull its audience into a world where the border between here and the afterlife dissolves, and where past ideals are pitted up against contemporary concerns. Congratulations, Get Rich! is a hilarious and unbridled celebration of being alive.'

Source: Production blurb.

'Five acts. Five writers. One hot-take on Shakespeare you didn’t see coming. 

'No one escapes scrutiny as La Boite’s revitalised CAESAR trained the spotlight on itself in a sharp and playful production with a scorching modern script.

'Shakespeare’s iconic thriller is pulled apart and reassembled with wicked humour, irreverence and passion as five fierce non-binary and female-identifying playwrights cleverly clap-back at power, politics and the patriarchy.

'Presented with the bite of a satire, CAESAR delivers the laughs and gasps in equal measure.

'This new work featured a powerful cast of Queensland actors including Chenoa Deemal, Billy Fogarty, Giema Contini, Bryan Probets and Will Carseldine.

'If you like sharp comedy, edgy politics and sassy Shakespeare, this sizzling take on CAESAR is sure to slay. #spoileralert'

Source: La Boite.

'When her mother dies an orphaned girl is left alone in Singapore, in a home that is now terrifyingly empty. To make matters worse, she’s now in the care of her estranged brother—her new legal guardian—and he’s not exactly up to the gig. For one, he’s only a few years older than her. And two, he’s a gangster. Like, an actual one.

'The future he sees for their atypical family-of-two is lined with gold. And Chanel. And Miu Miu. And Balenciaga. But his new dependent is less sure about this. What is the trade-off for living in this kind of luxury? What should be kept in this world, and what should be offered to the next? As it turns out, their late mother has some strong opinions on the matter.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Ancient myths and legends from around the globe are reimagined into modern day moments in this series of intriguing vignettes. Good Grief pays tribute to Greek, Chinese, Aztec, Japanese, Norse and other potent tales. With more than 30 characters, and an invitation to use ensemble and choral work, Good Grief peers into the windows of disparate lives in flux and transformation. We are left wondering if we, as human beings, are ultimately connected; if we all share the same fundamental need to love, and experience the same landscapes of lost and longing, hope and hunger for life.' (Production summary)

'A great city has been torn apart by a civil war between two brothers. In the aftermath, both lie dead – one hailed as a hero and lying in state, the other condemned as a traitor and dumped in a carrion pile. From the ashes of their conflict rises a dystopian state under a new leader – a career politician who rose to power by dint of her ruthlessness.

'Grieving and heartbroken, their sister Antigone challenges the leader for the right to bury and mourn her dead brother with dignity, sparking a furious act of rebellion that will shake the city to its foundations.

'In this lyrical adaptation of Sophocles’ timeless tragedy, award-winning Brisbane playwright Merlynn Tong adds an urgent modern twist'.

Source: Queensland Theatre Company.

'When a woman finds scars left by her ex-boyfriend of many years etched into her bones, she begins a turbulent journey to unpack her past and discover how he got under her skin. Based on the true story of two teenagers' romance as it blossoms then warps in the heat of bustling Singapore, Blue Bones is a one-woman show told with incredible honesty by Merlynn Tong. With multiple characters, song and arcade dance games, Blue Bones is a whirlwind of love and sex, violence and courage, with the wreckage continuing to be felt across the years. Against the backdrop of Singapore with all its beauty, rigidity and insistent chaos, Blue Bones will enchant and disturb, and perhaps even wake the stories dormant in your bones.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Ma Ma Ma Mad is the based on the true story of a young woman growing up in Singapore. This powerful play deals with death and suicide, love and loss, sex and sexual awakening, family and culture. Set in a dingy karaoke bar, this solo production brings us a heartfelt and honest tale, as the actor switches between herself, her mother, her maid and her ex-­lovers. Ma Ma Ma Mad is sometimes shocking, to the point of brutal honesty, but always endearing and ultimately hopeful tale from a woman who became an orphan as a child, then, after being raised by her adolescent brother, an international artist as a young woman.

'Drawing on a traditional narrative arc and littered with emotional expressions through physical theatre — sometimes words will just not do — this is an inspiring and raw tale that will have you questioning your own expressions of love, and leave you with faith in the human spirit that life does go on and, against all odds, we can triumph over the greatest of tragedies.' (Publication summary)