AustLit

''The past haunts the present, and the present is a kaleidoscope of infinite possibilities.

'Set in the near future of wild storms and oppressive social controls, Darkness transports audiences into overlapping worlds of mystery, transformation, fantasy and wonder. A site-responsive theatrical experience like no other; rich and seductive, gothic and resonant.

'Amid thunder and lightning, five deeply-curious and combative friends defy orders to take refuge in an abandoned house, now an eerie mansion of lost things. At its centre is the infamous poet Byron who, confronted by nature’s wrath, turmoil and plague, is caught in a tug of war of life and death.'

Source: Production blurb.

'When you lose something, you gain something else …

'Cathelijn is completely and undeniably alone: no friends, no family, no-one to turn to. All by herself in the centre of a dark forest, she tries to be strong, like a Viking. And that’s when she sees it – the house. A higgledy-piggeldy mess of a place as tall as the trees. Inside, she finds Piotr, a boy who never stops talking, and Elka, a grey-haired explorer who insists they keep the curtains closed tight. When they suddenly launch into the air and set off across the sky, Cathelijn learns that this is no ordinary house: it’s a Rescue House, and it rescues the Loneliest Child in the World.

'SLAP. A video of 16-year-old Immi hitting a soldier during a military occupation goes viral. BANG. Sofia’s impassioned speech for the victims of a school shooting makes international news. KISS. In the car park of a Wangaratta Woolies, people rally around Darby and Daniel as the boys lock lips in an attempt to set the world record for the longest kiss.

'Can young people really change the world? Multi-award-winning playwright and MTC Writer in Residence Dan Giovannoni knows they can. In SLAP. BANG. KISS. he tracks three young people whose stories kick-start a series of events none of them could have anticipated, transforming them into global symbols of revolution. But when their stories go viral and the whole world is watching, what will they do next?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'The 1995 debut novel from Christos Tsiolkas (The Slap, Dead Europe, Barracuda) makes its mainstage premiere 25 years after the fact.

'Ari (Roy Joseph, Five Bedrooms) is 19, unemployed and aimless. He doesn’t want to be gay. He doesn’t want to be Greek. He doesn’t want to be anything. He finds an escape, of sorts, via sex, drugs and dance clubs. But, he doesn’t really fit in with the queens at The Peel any better than with family in his theía’s backyard.

'This is the story that established Tsiolkas as a provocative master of the written word. Adapted for film in the 1998 underground hit Head On, and now, in close collaboration with playwright Dan Giovannoni, Tsiolkas rewrites Ari’s odyssey for the stage with a 21st century perspective.'

Source: Matlhouse Theatre.

'Based on the true story of the 1919 London to Australia air race. Air Race follows the stories of the six flight teams who took up the challenge. From crash landings, to disappearing planes and patching engines with chewing gum, their stories range from ingenious, to hilarious to deeply moving and sometimes tragic.

'Air Race tells a remarkable untold Australian story but also challenges us to question – how can we tell white, male Australian history in an innovative way, relevant to diverse young Australians?

'Subverting outdated gender and cultural representations, Air Race aims to enable all young Australians to see stories they can identify with, find inspiration in and allow them to ‘own’ their country’s history.'

Source: Arena Theatre.

'From migrant camps to pill-popping hipster dinner parties, from prison cells to gay saunas and porn shoots, Merciless Gods is a vicious and tender portrait of contemporary Australian society, capturing the haunting aspects of the human psyche.

'Multi award-winning Christos Tsiolkas is one of the most significant writers in Australia. This first ever stage adaptation of his short story collection, Merciless Gods, takes you deep into worlds both strange and familiar, introducing you to characters who will never let you go and situations that will haunt you forever.

'Told from diverse cultural perspectives, Merciless Gods by award-winning playwright Dan Giovannoni is urgent, dirty, glorious theatre.' (Production summary)

'In this world premiere, Reinhardt Jung’s internationally lauded novel is bought to life as a thrillingly inventive and remarkable production for adults and children alike.

'This is the story of Bambert – an impossibly small man with an enormous love for writing. Tucked away in his quiet attic, his only companions are the characters he has created in his stories. And then one day, Bambert decides to set his stories free, to send them out into the world on little balloons, in the hope that they will find a home. The stories contain instructions: whoever finds them is to return them to Bambert with a stamp from wherever they landed, so he knows where they should be set. But as each day passes, and no stories return, Bambert’s hope begins to fade. Will his stories ever find a home?

'Bambert’s Book of Lost Stories brings together Australia’s most extraordinary creative minds to realise this exquisite production. At times amusing, other times melancholy, this new production reminds us how stories connect us to the world and ultimately, the power of kindness.'

“I go, running, downstair, outside, go past a well and past Ugo house. All way until the village it nearly sop. Poi lo sento. Under the ground. Un brontolio.”

'Kaja fled war-torn Belgrade in the 1990s; arriving in Australia felt like coming to paradise. Ralph and Sara left Tuscany in the 1950s as part of the ‘populate or perish’ scheme and built a new life in Melbourne.

Now working as an interpreter, Kaja is called to a hospital one night to help a young man reconnect with his grandfather.

Developed during his time as Resident Writer at Red Stitch, with Dramaturge Gary Abrahams, Dan Giovanonni’s magical new play, Jurassica, weaves the past and present together, exploring what it is to migrate, to be displaced and to spend the rest of your life searching for home.' (Production summary)

'A cursed house. A charred man. A reckoning.

'After her twin’s sudden disappearance, Ana falls into a dark alternate world of riddles and dreams. The dead keep playing out the past, the Queen of Eternal Grief is working on a new cabaret number, and two tricksters lead a tribe of lost children.

'If she ever wants to bring her sister home, Ana must recognise her fate and claim an inheritance she never imagined was hers. How far would you go to save your own blood?

'A mix of opera-noir, cabaret and naturalistic drama, Twin is a mythic weighing of the past against the present. Featuring a large chorus ensemble from regional Australia and multiple writers, this is the first instalment of Arthur’s multi episode exploration of the Australian psyche.' (Production summary)

'Kiki Coriander wants to run away with the circus and have an affair with a bearded lady, Bob dreams of time travel but knows it's impossible and Jumper is in a love triangle with Kiki and his pet snake. Things are complicated further when Jumper dies unexpectedly in a bus crash. "Cut Snake" is the story of how this event changes these three lives and the extraordinary ripple effect it has on the world at large.

Source: www.melbournefringe.com.au/ (Sighted 11/10/11).