A brand-new circus-theatre work is set to launch at Melbourne Fringe 2025 as GO/NO GO premieres at Theatre Works this October.
GO/NO GO fuses the thrills of circus with the high stakes of the space race to reimagine the untold story of the First Lady Astronaut Trainees: thirteen pioneering women who, in 1961, undertook the same gruelling tests as the original Mercury 7 astronauts. They proved they had the right stuff. But their toughest mission was convincing NASA they had the right to try.
Told through aerials, acrobatics, juggling, cyr wheel, and live music, GO/NO GO is both tribute and provocation, asking: Who gets to take risks? Who gets to make history? Who gets to be remembered?
Uniting for GO/NO GO is a powerhouse ensemble of circus and theatre artists. Some join straight from the Edinburgh Fringe, others from the world stage of Cirque du Soleil, and performers from Australia’s most exciting independent companies.
Directed by Felicia Lannan (Wildhouse Circus) and Tess Walsh (Nexus & Sevenfold Theatre Company), the cast features Sophie Bohlsen (Absurd Circus), Robyn Glowacki (Fliptease), Rindi Harradine (After Dark Theatre), Cassia Jamieson (Circus Oz), Lucy Knight (Melbourne Shakespeare Company), Grace Law (Brisbane Festival), Emily Loe (Primal), Amy Nightingale-Olsen (Cirque du Soleil), and Nina Robertson (Gravity Dolls).
The project itself has been an international journey. Written between Canada and Iceland, its first draft was developed near a lunar analogue site – that is a location on Earth that is geologically similar to the Moon!
The full production was created in Melbourne, through La Mama Theatre’s Explorations Program, Geelong Arts Centre’s Launchpad Program, and Gasworks’ Premiere. Now, GO/NO GO lands at Melbourne Fringe to take audiences on an interstellar adventure.
“GO/NO GO is about daring to imagine a bigger future. Circus is all about taking risks and defying gravity, and that’s exactly what these women were doing in the 1960s. It feels right to tell their story through this art form,” said Co-Director Felicia Lannan.
When NASA first debated which professions were best suited for space travel, an unconventional suggestion was made: how about circus performers? Acrobats and aerialists, with their skill in defying gravity, might just be ideal for working in extreme environments.
Though the idea was never pursued, GO/NO GO brings this connection full circle, using circus to explore the themes of weightlessness, fearlessness, and the determination of the First Lady Astronaut Trainees. As NASA prepares to land the first woman on the moon through the Artemis Project, GO/NO GO shines a light on the women who paved the way.
In an era when women were barred from spaceflight, the First Lady Astronaut Trainees proved their courage, persistence, and brilliance, and were denied their chance to launch. This show celebrates their story through circus: an artform built on risk, resilience, and the dream of flight.
GO/NO GO is high-energy circus-theatre for lovers of adventure, space, science, and anyone who has ever wanted to go to the moon.
GO/NO GO
Theatre Works, 14 Acland Street, St Kilda
Season: 14 – 18 October 2025
Bookings: www.melbournefringe.com.au
For more information, visit: www.theatreworks.org.au for details.
Image: GO/NO GO – photo by smwimage