Fringe, the 2016 Outstanding performing arts as an actor, production. She was in the Access Award at singer and producer. London and seasons Fringe, and a 2015 Nominee of Working Title’s production for GLOBE LGBTI Artist of the Simon Corfield of Billy Elliot, for which she Year. Mama has worked with Kim received a Helpmann Award Brook Andrew, Phillip Adams Simon’s acting credits include: for Best Female Actor in a BalletLab, is a proud alumni of for Griffin: Motortown, Orestes Musical, the Sydney Theatre GRIFFIN THEATRE IN ASSOCIATION Monash Uni Student Theatre, 2.0, Tattoo; for Belvoir: Bliss; for Critics Award for the Judith WITH PRESENTS and a company member of Company: Johnson Award for Best Finucane & Smith, with whom The Bee, Every Second, Torch Performance by an Actress in she was amongst the cast who Song Trilogy; for Melbourne a Musical and the Green Room THE HOMOSEXUALS received the Best International Theatre Company: The Goat Award for Best Female Artist OR ‘FAGGOTS’ Production Award at the or Who is Sylvia?, The Lonely in a Leading Role. Genevieve’s CHAMACO Awards, Cuba. Wolf; for Tamarama Rock TV credits include: After the BY DECLAN GREENE Surfers: Poster Girl, Trapture; Beep, Heartland, Neighbours, Simon Burke and for Vass Theatre Group: Prisoner, Rake, Redfern Now, 17 MARCH-29 APRIL Warren Bad Jews. He performed in The Secret River, Three Men Simon has appeared in over The One Eyed Man is King for and a Baby Grand and Top 130 stage productions in Schaubuhne Berlin. Simon was of the Lake, for which she Australia and the UK, including in the national tour of Critical received Equity Ensemble for Griffin: October, Satango; Stage’s multi-award winning Award for Oustanding Q for Belvoir: Snugglepot & musical cabaret, Songs For The Performance by an Ensemble Cuddlepie; for Black Swan Fallen. His TV and film credits in a Telemovie or Mini-Series. Company: include: , COPS: Her film credits include: Billy’s Clinton The Musical; for L.A.C., Crownies, Darwin’s Holiday, The Dressmaker, : They’re Brave New World, Packed Holy Smoke, The Piano, Soft THE U Playing our Song; for To The Rafters. Simon is the Fruit, Suburban Mayhem, Kookaburra Theatre Company: co-creator of the web comedy and Sweetie, for which she Company; for Harvest Rain series The Birth of Creation received the Australian Film Theatre Co: Hairspray; for and a founding member of the Critics Award for Best Actress. IMG: The Musical; for award-winning performance Genevieve has an album of her A HOMOSEXUALS Melbourne Theatre Company: group SandS through the concert, Take Me Out; for Sydney hourglass. He is a graduate of Angels in the City. Theatre Company: A Little Night WAAPA (Acting). Music, Mr Kolpert, Mrs Warren’s Lincoln Younes Profession, She Stoops To Genevieve Lemon Lucacz S E Conquer, The Wharf Revue, Up Diana This is Lincoln’s first For Grabs; and for Performing Genevieve’s theatre credits production with Griffin. His Lines’ national tour of Three include: for Griffin: The Big credits for television include: Furies. In London’s West End Picture; for Belvoir: The City Homocide, Hiding, Home he has starred as Captain von Blind Giant Is Dancing, The & Away, Love Child, Tangle, Trapp in , Cosmonaut’s Last Message, for which he won Most H N as Raoul in Phantom of the Death Of A Salesman, Outstanding Performance by Opera, in Seventeen; for Ensemble an Actor. Lincoln’s film credits opposite Dame Theatre: Tribes, Broken include: Down Under, The and in the European premieres Glass; for Melbourne Theatre Wedding Party. of the Australian classics Company: Piaf, Summer Of T Holding the Man and When The Seventeenth Doll; for the Rain Stops Falling. Simon’s : television credits include: Deep The Girl Who Saw Everything, Water, Hustle, Miss Fisher’s The Hanging, Hanging Man, Murder Mysteries, Rake and Harbour, Hay Fever, The Madras PRODUCTION DONORS A South Pacific. For 25 years House, Merrily We Roll Along, Simon was one of ABC TV’s Play Miracle City, Morning Sacrifice, School’s best-loved presenters. Noises Off, Once In A Lifetime, Presenting Partner At age 13, Simon starred The Recruit, The Republic Rebel Penfold-Russell in ’s feature of Myopia, The Seagull, YOU G film The Devil’s Playground, Summer Rain, Victory, The winning the AACTA Award for Wharf Revue; for Queensland Production Patrons Best Actor, the youngest-ever Theatre Company: And A Anonymous recipient of this honour. He Nightingale Sang, Brilliant Andrew Bell & THANK went on to reprise this role Lies, The Venetian Twins. Joanna Bird 40 years later in mini-series Genevieve also performed in Devil’s Playground for which he the Australian premieres of Robert Dick was also Executive Producer. Steaming, Steel Magnolias, & Erin Shiel In 2015 Simon received the Priscilla Queen of the Richard McHugh AO (Officer of the Order of Desert The Musical, and The & Kate Morgan th Australia) for his service to the Mousetrap 65 Anniversary Bruce Meagher & Greg Waters Penelope Wass Richard Weinstein & Richard Benedict

Government Partners Production Partners Gil Appleton Rodney Cambridge Michael Hobbs Supported by our Production Partner program Tony Jones In association with Griffi n acknowledges the generosity of the Seaborn, Broughton & Walford Foundation Steve Riethoff in allowing it the use of the SBW Stables Theatre rent free, less outgoings, since 1986. Diana Simmonds The Farce is popular enough, when it comes to revivals. In This is where I’ve wound up setting my BIOGRAPHIES Darwin Festival: Highway of State Theatre Company and National Studio program; for the last few years in Australia we’ve seen plays like Noises farce: square in the cross-fire of a culture Declan Greene Lost Hearts; for the National Belvoir: , which Jetpack Theatre Collective: Off, A Flea In Her Ear, and One Man, Two Guvners hit stages war where outrage is currency, feelings are Playwright Institute of Dramatic Art: Big toured nationally,BIOGRAPHIES and to South How. Dare., co-written for Declan Greene is a theatre- Love, Shopping and Fucking, Korea and London’s Barbican Sydney Fringe Festival; to mass delight. But as far as new playwriting goes, over facts, sensitivities are ignored, atonement maker based in Melbourne. His After Dinner and The Winter’s Theatre; with Melbourne for Montague Basement: the last few decades the Farce has gone the way of the is impossible, and simplistic buzz- words previous works as a playwright Tale; and for the Western Theatre Company: National Kaleidoscope, Telescope; Passion Play, the Verse Drama, and Commedia dell’Arte... like ‘Cultural Marxism’, ‘Social Engineering’, include: for Griffin Theatre Australian Academy of Interest; with Queensland for Old Fitz Theatre: Are We All thoroughly—and in some cases, mercifully—extinct. and ‘Snowflake’ are used to stifle Company and Perth Theatre Performing Arts: As You Like It. Theatre Company: Other Awake?, written as part of the discourse in much the same manner as Company: Eight Gigabytes Desert Cities, Gasp!, Managing New Fitz Writers Program; for A couple of years ago I was speaking with another writer ‘Bigotry’, ‘Privilege’, and ‘Nazi’. As the Left of Hardcore Pornography, Marg Horwell Carmen. Other highlights: I Am Smoking Gum Theatre: Before about why farces are so rarely written these days. We both Eora at Sydney Festival and and Right slowly distil their values into pure which won the Max Afford Designer the Water Gets Cold. His credits agreed that the stakes necessary to manufacture this Playwright’s Award; for Marg is a multi award winning Waltzing The Wilarra at Perth for dramaturgy include: for black and white, I’ve tried to write a play of mechanical type of playwriting were, in general, absent Malthouse Theatre: I Am A designer and is the Designer International Arts Festival. leftofcentre: Transience; for muddy grey in-betweens. It’s a comic play from our contemporary lives. The plays of Feydeau— Miracle, which won the Green In Residence at Malthouse Trent is a recipient of the Mike Montague Basement: The Big about comedy. An offensive play about Room Award for Best Writing Theatre. Marg has won six Walsh Fellowship and WA Bruise. Charles is currently unquestionably the greatest farceur—were written during offence. A work which oscillates moment for the Australian Stage, Greenroom Awards and two Department of Culture and the directing drama students at the Belle Époque era, a time of tremendous moral upheaval to moment between Politically Correct and Pompeii and L.A; for Malthouse for Arts Young People Fellowship. the Australian Institute of in France. Most of his farces feature highly-repressed Problematic (or its ‘fun’ alternative: Theatre & Arena Theatre her work. Her theatre credits A graduate of WAAPA Performing Arts in a play about married couples who, for one reason or another, are driven Company: Moth, which won include: for Griffin: Eight (Production & Design). trans youth. Probbo!); attempting to defy the lazy wild with the desire to cheat on their spouse—even though the AWGIE Award for Theatre Gigabytes of Hardcore categorisations we’ve taken to using in our to be discovered en flagrante would mean social death. for Young Audiences. As a Pornography; for Angus Cerini Steve Toulmin Rhianne Perrie knee-jerk summation of art, public director and dramaturg his Doubletap: Chapters From The Composer & Sound Designer Stage Manager When I decided to try my hand at writing a contemporary discourse, and the existence of certain credits include: for Griffin, La Pandemic, Resplendence, Save Steve’s credits as Composer This is Rhianne’s first farce, I hit my first obstacle in the creation of these stakes. human beings. PLAYWRIGHT’S NOTE Mama and MKA: The Unspoken For Crying, Wretch; for Dee & and/or Sound Designer production with Griffin. In 2017 we’re a less repressed bunch where sex is Word is “Joe” (by Zoey Dawson); Cornelius: Savages, Shit; for include: for Griffin: Gloria, Rhianne’s theatre credits In 2017, perhaps the only thing that unites for ZLMD Shakespeare : The School , Beached; include: for Barking Gecko concerned. Having your affair outed might raise the ire of a the members of the Left and Right is a fear of being Company: Conviction (by Zoey For Wives; for Belvoir: Nora; for for Griffin and La Boite: A Theatre Company: Bamberts few relatives and close friends, but most people won’t care, interned in one of these sticky categories—because it’s Dawson); for Sydney Theatre Malthouse Theatre: Edward II, I Hoax; for Bell Shakespeare: Book of Lost Stories, In A Dark unless it’s with a horse or a sibling. In my own inner-city impossible to escape, and often the company really fucking Company: Hamlet: Prince of Am A Miracle, The Good Person Othello, Richard III; for Belvoir: Dark Wood, Jasper Jones, This Left-wing bubble, we aren’t afraid of being outed as ‘sexual Skidmark (co-created with of Szechuan, The Histrionic, Jasper Jones, The Blind Girl Laughs. As Assistant Stage sucks. Amy Schumer enjoyed three seconds of being the deviants’ anymore. But we are afraid of being labelled a The Listies). Alongside Ash Tame; for Melbourne Theatre Giant Is Dancing, Ivanov, La Manager: for Barking Gecko world’s most adored feminist comedian, before some ‘bigot’... Or any of its equally bone-rattling sub-labels: Flanders, Declan co-runs Company (MTC): Birdland, Traviata, Blue Wizard, Is This Theatre Company: Storm idiotic jokes from a decade earlier relegated her to the queer Peddling, Constellations, Cock, Thing On?, 20 Questions, The Boy; for Black Swan Theatre ‘misogynist’, ‘racist’, ‘homophobe’, ‘transphobe’, ‘ableist’... category of racist—alongside alt-right lunatics like Richard company Sisters Grimm. He Music, The Dream Life Of Seed and Scorched; for La Company: Clinton The Musical, If you spend any amount of time commenting on social Spencer and Milo Yiannopoulos, who protest this label just has directed and co-created all Butterflies, The Water Carriers, Boite: Tender Napalm, Julius A House On The Lake, A Perfect as loudly. Non-binary trans-femme performance poets their shows to date, including: Circle Mirror Transformation, Caesar, Hamlet. For La Specimen; for West Australian media, this fear is particularly well-founded. The I Call My Brothers; For Sisters Boite and STC: Edward DarkMatter reached almost unprecedented levels of fame for Griffin Independent and Ballet: Coppelia. She has also graduation of identity politics from academia into public Theatre Works: Summertime Grimm: Lilith The Jungle Girl, Gant’s Amazing Feats of worked for West Australian discourse has been swift. New sets of parameters have and influence for their inflammatory, galvanising activism, in the Garden of Eden; La Traviata, and Summertime Loneliness; for Michael Sieders Symphony Orchestra, been created around language and culture, which shift in before one poorly-worded Facebook post had them classed for Belvoir: La Traviata; for in the Garden of Eden. Marg Presents: Porn. Cake; for Woodford Folk Festival, Perth specificity to both the person speaking and the person as rape apologists. Fred Nile—a man who has campaigned Malthouse Theatre and Sydney was nominated for a Helpmann the Royal Queensland Show International Arts Festival, listening, along the axes of gender, race, sexuality, ability obsessively for decades to suppress the civil rights of Theatre Company: Calpurnia Award for Marlin presented by (Ekka): Arena Spectacular Fringe World Perth, Ochre (and sometimes, where convenient, class). For people who LGBTIQA+ people—is hugely outraged whenever someone Descending; for Melbourne MTC and Arena Theatre. (2013-2015);for Sydney Aboriginal Dance Company, calls him homophobe. Meanwhile, anyone who knows Theatre Company: Lilith: Theatre Company (STC): A Perth Theatre Company and have been historically marginalised—such as women, Jungle Girl; for Sydney Theatre Trent Suidgeest Flea In Her Ear, Power Plays, Spare Parts Theatre Company. LGBTIQA+ individuals, or People of Colour—these rules the correct vocabulary can cloak harmful ideas — Company: Little Mercy. Declan Lighting Designer Little Mercy; for Ensemble Rhianne is a graduate of offer a new frontier of self-determination. An opportunity unintentional or otherwise—under surfaces that look is Resident Artist at Malthouse Trent’s recent credits as a Theatre: Great Falls, Liberty WAAPA (Stage Management). to exert control over one’s place in culture, after perfectly PC. All of which seems to me, if nothing else, Theatre. Lighting Designer include: for Equality Fraternity, Circle generations of being forced into clumsy semantic slightly farcical. Ambassador Theatre Group: Mirror Transformation; For Mama Alto pigeonholes designated by the majority. Lee Lewis The Beast; for Opera Australia: Queensland Theatre: Bae Bae/ Pam Declan Greene Director John Bell’s Carmen, The Opera Switzerland, That Face; for Mama Alto is a jazz singer For people who don’t know these rules—or resent them— Writer Lee is the Artistic Director (The Eighth Wonder); for Strut & Fret: Blanc De Blanc; and cabaret artiste. Her they can seem like a ruthless and over- sensitive claim for of Griffin Theatre Company Opera Australia and Barking for Sydney Festival: All past festival credits territory that is publicly owned. Impinging on that and one of Australia’s leading Gecko Theatre Company: The The Sex I’ve Ever Had; for include: Adelaide Cabaret directors. For Griffin she has Rabbits, which was part of the independent theatre Festival, Adelaide Fringe, fundamental human right: ‘Freedom of Speech’. directed: The Bleeding Tree, for Perth Festival, Melbourne sector:Prehistoric, After All American Songbook Festival, which Lee was awarded Best Festival, Sydney Festival and This, Queen Of Wolves, Me Castlemaine State Festival, Director at the 2016 Helpmann QPAC Brisbane Season; for Pregnant, Rommy and Trapture. Darwin Festival, Fringe World Declan Greene’s Eight Gigabytes of writing is challenging for actors and audience alike. It Awards, Gloria, Eight Gigabytes The Production Company: Steve’s credits as Associate Perth, Havana International Hardcore Pornography was the first play I requires a deep honesty about frailty and pretension. It is of Hardcore Pornography, DUSTY, Nice Work If You Can Designer include: for Belvoir: Theatre Festival, Marysville Get It; for Sydney Theatre Jazz & Blues Weekend, programmed in my first season as Artistic painful to make… and not just because of all the slamming Masquerade (co-directed with Radiance, The Baulkham ), Emerald City, Company: Hayfever, TALK. Hills African Ladies Troupe. Melbourne Cabaret Festival, Director of Griffin Theatre Company. It of doors. It is painful because it requires us all to dip into A Rabbit for Kim Jong-il, The Trent’s early career began with His credits as Audio Visual Melbourne Fringe Festival, was spare and compassionate – two the ‘well of worst moments’ in order to bring the best Serpent’s Table (co-directed 20+ commissions at Black Designer include: for Griffin: Midsumma, and Stonnington people and a chair to create a portrait of moments of the play to life. by Darren Yap), Replay, Silent Swan State Theatre Company Angela’s Kitchen, Between Jazz Festival. Mama has contemporary loneliness. Disco, The Bull, The Moon and including: Boy Gets Girl, Dust, Two Waves; for STC: God of performed at venues such Yes there are big contemporary political issues wrapped the Coronet of Stars, The Call, A Extinction, The House On The Carnage, Tot Mom. As Foley as: , The Homosexuals, or ‘Faggots’ is nothing around the play but the heart of the story is filled with love, Hoax and The Nightwatchman; Lake, Laughter On The 23rd Artist, Steve has worked on: Bendigo Art Gallery (Bendigo), like that. This play is a cluttered, messy, age, friendship, the crises of choice and the horror of for Griffin and Bell Floor, The Motherf**cker With for STC: Our Town. Steve is also Bruno’s Art Gallery (Marysville), cruel modern farce. And right now, in the mistakes. If Eight Gigabytes laid bare our fears of being Shakespeare: The Literati; for A Hat, Next To Normal, The known as a songwriter and Brisbane Powerhouse midst of the anarchy of the rehearsal alone, The Homosexuals, or ‘Faggots’ dissects the Bell Shakespeare: The School Red Balloon, When The Rain music producer, having worked (Brisbane), The Butterfly Club, for Wives and Twelfth Night; for Stops Falling and The White with artists such as Ricki-Lee Chapel off Chapel, The Copa room I am hating both the form and the aspirations of coupledom but with the scalpel of farce. Belvoir: That Face, This Heaven, Divers Of Broome, which was Coulter, Samantha Jade and Room at the Havana Riviera playwright: the form for embracing Everyday at work is like entering the humiliation Olympics. Half and Half, A Number, 7 part of Perth International Megan Washington. (Havana, Cuba), Entrecôte, implausibility and props, and the Blowjobs and Ladybird; for Arts Festival. Trent’s credits Hares & Hyenas, La Boheme It is a privilege to direct the first production of a new playwright for leaving me with no choice Melbourne Theatre Company: as Set & Lighting Designer Charles O’Grady (Adelaide), The Melba but to put these issues on the stage. If Australian play. It is an honour to direct a second David Williamson’s Rupert, include: for Black Swan State Assistant to the Director Spiegeltent, Melbourne Recital DIRECTOR’S NOTE Declan Greene had a less urgent voice, my production by Declan Greene. It is a real joy to be working which toured to Washington Theatre Company: Death Charles is a transgender Centre, MPavillion, National life would be a lot simpler this week. across the states bringing the audiences of Melbourne DC as part of the World Stages Of A Salesman, Dinner, and playwright and director. Gallery of Victoria, RMIT Design and Sydney together in a play that speaks to the identity International Arts Festival and Shrine, which was the WA Charles’ credits as a playwright Hub and Sofitel Melbourne on For what this play does share with Eight Gigabytes is future of this country. to Sydney’s Theatre Royal in representative at Centenary include: for Australian Theatre Collins. She was the recipient Declan’s extraordinary capacity to detail the humiliations 2014; for STC: Honour, Love- of Canberra Festival. In co- For Young People: Intersection, of the 2014 Weekly Award Lies-Bleeding and ZEBRA!; for productions with Black Swan co-written as part of their for Best Cabaret at Adelaide and horrors of ordinary modern urban existence. His Lee Lewis Director