How well do you know the person at the next desk?
Red Stitch Actors Theatre presents the world premiere of Stop.Rewind from Australian playwright and filmmaker, Melissa Bubnic. Developed through the Red Stitch Writers program responsible for the award-winning production Red Sky Morning, Stop. Rewind is a deft and recognisable comedy with heart that begs the question, is it too late to live the life you’ve always wanted?
As a disparate group of co-workers at a departmental office struggle to hold onto their dreams, we glimpse the series of compromises that has led each to their place in the eclectic community.
"The comedy Stop. Rewind takes us in a completely different direction from the first red Stitch Writers work, Red Sky Morning," said David Whiteley, Red Stitch Actors Theatre Artistic Director. "Melissa was fascinated by David Greig’s Yellow Moon (Red Stitch, 2009) and what grew out of her original idea was an hilarious and engaging portrait of a group of co-workers who, in their conversations about themselves, about each other and in their private missives, related a very human story of a group of people which is told by the group itself."Trevor is worried he’s wasted his life. Dim wants to be a musician but he’s been doing this ‘temporary’ gig in administration for 13 months. Heather is perfectly fine, except for being too old and fat to ever have sex again. Tabitha is fine with having sex, only it’s with her married co-worker Grant.
Life continues at its painfully familiar pace until an unexpected event forces the group to reassess their own lives, what they really want, and what they are prepared to sacrifice to get it.
“I wanted to explore what it means to be a success in a culture where Hollywood, the self-help industry, and Australian Idol tell us to ‘Follow your dreams,’” says Bubnic. “How are you supposed to build a life of contentment and self-fulfillment when you’re obsessed with chasing something that’s almost always out of reach? And if the dream doesn’t come true, does that mean you’re a failure?”Combining self-narrative and modern modes of communication, Bubnic’s play creates a fascinating theatrical portrait of a group of people who, in talking about themselves and about each other, relate the story of an entire department.
Director, Anne Browning is a Victorian Green Room award nominee for her performance in The Fortunes of Richard Mahoney for Playbox/RQTC. She is also well known for her collaboration with Peter Houghton on The Sax Diaries for Melbourne Fringe and Comedy Festivals in 1999, which won a Fringe Award as well as the Peter Houghton one man play, The Pitch. She is making her directorial debut with Red Stitch.
Stop. Rewindstars Red Stitch ensemble members Andrea Swifte, Ella Caldwell, Olga Makeeva and Tim Potter with special guests Giordano Gangl, Ian Rooney and James Taylor. Set design is by Peter Mumford, Lighting Design is by Stelios Karagiannis, with Sam Santana.
Venue: Red Stitch Actors Theatre Rear, 2 Chapel St, St Kilda
Season: July – August
