EXTINCTION by Hannie Rayson

A seemingly simple story about saving the Tiger Quoll from extinction that contains a complex critique of ‘heroes vs villains’ narratives, highlighting those narratives unsuitability for the modern world.This play deals with a wide variety of possibly interrelated extinctions: the extinction of the Tiger Quoll; the impending threat of global warming and the extinction of humanity; the extinction of white picket fence monogamous heterosexual life partnerships; the extinction of didactic concepts of good and evil.These are just some of the themes that this play subtly mines.

This workshop will provoke questions and give young audiences the tools to explore individual answers to the play and how to tackle the next phase of life on this planet.

“Perhaps extinction is just part of the cycle of life”

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MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING by William Shakespeare

Performance

This short performance is a joyful bubbling brook of a rom-com with a warning sign that malice, power games and social critique lurk beneath the surface. Is love a virus or a cure? In a world
of deceptions and masks, the lines between romance, violence, desire, and revenge blur. Do we celebrate existing notions of love or deconstruct them and strike courtship down? Can we do both? What is the role of leaders and their relationship to compassion, equality, and justice? Are they the source of our ‘bum jokes’ or elected to maintain the status quo?

Workshop

Where the performance blends light and dark interpretations, our workshop investigates how the text supports more ex- treme readings. One could read Don Pedro and John as harm- less tinkering jesters or powerful men quick to exact violence if their whims are not met. Could Hero and Claudio be pure and innocent lovers or representations of the transactional transfer of possessions and influence? And are Beatrice and Benedick potentially gullible egos influenced by pandering and conflict, or brilliant minds, burning in loneliness that realise they need not be alone?

“I do spy some marks of love in her.”

 

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WOMEN OF TROY by Euripides

Performance

The screams of the women of Troy reverberate through time, echoing into the contemporary world.This stylised ensem-
ble piece is a great introduction to the story of the Trojan War but also draws our attention to how parable functions
in Greek drama through archetype and myth.The tales of Hecuba, Helen, Cassandra, Andromache, and Talthibius become representations of familiar characters, social types and catego- ries.The result is a powerful, cathartic production that reaches out to young audiences making this ancient tale relevant and immediate.

Workshop

Through questions and replaying scenes we examine how directorial choices in the production eclipse and highlight certain themes in the text.Alternative readings ofTalthibius and Helen tease out mechanisms of institutional violence and the dynamics of relationships shaped by seductive power and the concept of ‘the vixen’.Where time permits, we examine how dramatic moments may have achieve a different cathartic effect by highlighting individual character voices and less sym- bolic dramatic choices.

“The mortal who sacks fallen cities is a fool, his own turn must come”

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MACBETH by William Shakespeare

Performance

When an evil person gets what’s coming to them there is no tragedy.This production focuses on the familiarity and banality of having desires and ambitions, and how when unchecked, they can lead to consequences beyond imagination.We focus on the journey of a loving couple, who each want the other to achieve their dreams, but ultimately destroy everything they care about; themselves, and each other.

Workshop

Students are guided to critique the performance, ask questions and delve deeper into interpretive practice by looking at the couple’s relationship, and other monologues as time permits. The scene between Macbeth and “His Wife” before Duncan is murdered is used to explore gender, manipulation, and power. The “unsex me here” monologue continues the discussion about gender introducing ideas about frailty and the super- natural.The “two truths” monologue offers an opportunity to show their ambition in tangible, contemporary terms.

“Let not light see my black and deep desires”

Prices:

Short performance $10.50 + GST per student
(minimum total fee $1050 + GST)

Short performance + workshop $12.50 + GST per student
(minimum total fee $1250 + GST)

Reserve your spotNO CREDIT CARD REQUIRED
Reserve your spotNO CREDIT CARD REQUIRED

ROMEO AND JULIET by William Shakespeare

Performance

“I saw Shakespeare, it wasn’t hard, and don’t tell anyone but I may have even liked it.” This is the sort of thing we hear from students after this show.The dramatic style mirrors the nar- rative, creating an exciting ride for our young audiences.They are drawn into reckless abandon, a world of period costumes, playful sword fights and comedic characters, as Romeo and Juliet fall in love.Then of course the joy and frivolity ruptures and fades as the tragedy sets in. Both the actors and students all fall together.

Workshop

Students are guided to ask questions and talk about the performance; what they understood, what they liked or didn’t like. We often hear the comment that Romeo and Juliet is
a play about ‘two dumb teenagers’ and lust.We explore this idea so students see how an idea that seems to be an off- hand comment, could form the basis of a valid reading.Then we challenge this idea by looking at different portrayals of the main characters that might make the love-at-first-sight nar- rative more appealing.Where time and the level of the group permits, we also look at how creative choices can be used to explore essay prompts such as “Who is to blame?” and “Is love or hate the more powerful force?”

O teach me how I should forget to think”

Prices:

Short performance $10.50 + GST per student
(minimum total fee $1050 + GST)

Short performance + workshop $12.50 + GST per student
(minimum total fee $1250 + GST)

Reserve your spotNO CREDIT CARD REQUIRED