Following the success of Tusk Tusk at St Martins Theatre earlier this year, Patalog Theatre Co takes on Simon Stephens’ Punk Rock in a new production at Melbourne’s fortyfivedownstairs this December.
Intelligent. Articulate. F***ed. Tucked away in a grammar school library, the dreaded exam period looming, seven students on the cusp of adulthood humiliate and lustfully toy with each other, their latent fury skirting dangerously close to the surface.
Multiple Olivier and Tony Award winning British playwright Simon Stephens (The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time) defies expectations to examine adolescence with an unparalleled authenticity and unsettling honesty in his acclaimed play Punk Rock, nominated for the Evening Standard Award for Best New Play in 2010.
“Punk Rock is a play which is as addictive as it is horrifying,” says Patalog Artistic Director Ben Walter. “Putting young people front and centre, it depicts the terrors of school-yard bullying with a painful accuracy. Punk Rock exposes the extreme behaviour displayed on the stage as only a degree removed from what we consider normal in our everyday.”
Tusk Tusk Director Ruby Rees (whose acting credits include Foxtel’s Picnic at Hanging Rock) will again collaborate with Patalog Theatre Co, along with Directing Consultant Iain Sinclair (MTC’s A View From The Bridge) and a stellar creative team that includes Set and Costume Designers Dann Barber (33 Variations and Barnum at the Comedy Theatre) and Freya Allen (Mr. Burns: a post-electric play) and Lighting Designer Richard Vabre (Do Not Go Gentle, Mr Burns: a post-electric play).
Walter joins an incredible young cast, along with Zoe Hawkins (feature film credits include Breeding in Captivity and A Step in the Right Direction), Laurence Boxhall (MTC’s Shakespeare in Love), Ruby Duncan (ABC’s Glitch), Annie Shapero (LiNa), Karl Richmond (Theatreworks’ Truly Madly Britney), Flynn Smeaton (UMMTA’s Legally Blonde) and Jessica Clarke (Red Stitch’s Pomona).
Simon Stephens has gained a reputation as one of Britain’s most important contemporary playwrights. His work includes Fatherland (Manchester International Festival), Wastwater, Motortown, Herons and Bluebird (Royal Court Theatre); the Olivier Award-winning adaptation of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Harper Regan and Port (National Theatre); an adaptation of A Doll’s House (Young Vic); Carmen Disruption (Deutsches Schauspielhaus, Hamburg); Pornography (Edinburgh Festival); and On the Shore of the Wide World (Royal Exchange, Manchester and National Theatre).
Director: Ruby Rees Featuring: Laurence Boxhall, Jessica Clarke, Ruby Duncan, Zoe Hawkins, Jillian Nguyen, Karl Richmond, Annie Shapero, Flynn Smeaton, Ben Walter Direction Consultant: Iain Sinclair Set and Costume Design: Freya Allen Design Consultant: Dann Barber Lighting Design: Richard Vabre Sound Design: Daniella Esposito and Finnian Langham Stage Manager: Ash Walwyn Assistant Stage Manager: Brooke Simmonds Producer: Ben Walter Associate Producer: Lucy Holz
Punk Rock
fortyfivedownstairs, 45 Flinders Lane, Melbourne
Season: 6 – 15 December 2019 (previews: 4 – 5 December)
Bookings: www.fortyfivedownstairs.com
For more information, visit: www.patalogtheatre.com for details.
Image: Punk Rock – courtesy of Patalog Theatre Co