After sold-out seasons at the Castlemaine State Festival and Yirramboi Festivals in 2021, Brodie Murray’s Soul of Possum makes its return to fortyfivedownstairs this December.
It’s 1853 on the Murray River, Swan Hill, Wamba Wamba country. As the wildlife flees through the bush from an unseen threat, three Wamba Wamba warriors must survive a cat-and-mouse chase across country to warn their people of the oncoming colonialists. Led by a volatile captain, the colonialists have their own internal power struggles to contend with.
Directed by Beng Oh (Song from the Uproar, Soldier Boy) with choreography by Balla Neba (Janjari, Dance Rites) Soul of Possum tells a historical thriller that explores the contrasting relationships settlers and Blak peoples have with Country, ecology, leadership and spirituality.
“I felt it in my bones a need to tell this story again four years on from its debut in 2021. Soul of Possum is for my family, my mob. This play sheds a light on what our people went through, the near erasure of us. Audiences need to experience that other side. Our stories which have been spoken over,” says Murray.
Quickly establishing himself as one of Australia’s most exciting emerging playwrights, Murray’s credits include The Whisper (fortyfivedownstairs, Melbourne Fringe), Soul of Possum (Yirramboi Festival, Castlemaine State Festival) and Billy’s Choice (Melbourne Fringe Festival) for which he was awarded the Young Creatives Award (2021), the Creative Australia Emerging Career Development Award (2022), and the Melbourne Fringe Festival’s Best Emerging Indigenous Artist Award.
Murray is a recent recipient of the All First Nations AFN Multi-Talented Award (2025) for playwriting and performance. He is a 2020 graduate of Aboriginal Performance at WAAPA, and is completing his Bachelor of Fine Arts (Theatre) degree at the Victorian College of the Arts (VCA).
“It is great news that our talented cast of performers are back together for the 2025 season, with one new actor joining the team. Thank you to fortyfivedownstairs for presenting my work,” says Murray.
Murray will also perform in the play, alongside a stellar cast including Gabriel Partington (Betrayal, Just a Boy, Standing in Front of a Girl), Kevin Dee (The Cost, Monstrous Acts), Leigh Scully (Traps, Harm), Luke Mason (Adrift, Cuckoo), Wimiya Woodley (Panawathi Girl, Operation Boomerang) and renowned choreographer/performer, Balla Neba (Janjari, Dance Rites).
“Soul of Possum was a special project that brought together Indigenous and white actors to tell the story of first contact between young Wamba Wamba men and an invading colonial power,” says director Beng Oh. “It resonated not just with our cast, but with audiences at YIRRAMBOI and Castlemaine State Festival back in 2021.”
“It’s a mark of the impact that it had on us that our entire production team and all of the actors (bar one, who was unavailable) jumped at the opportunity to bring it back in this year.”
“I’m excited not just to enter the rehearsal room with the same team, but to delve deeper into Brodie’s play. It’s a youthful work that’s not afraid to tackle big issues, and I believe speaks to our present.”
Director: Beng Oh | Featuring: Gabriel Partington, Balla Neba, Kevin Dee, Leigh Scully, Wimiya Woodley, Luke Mason, Brodie Murray | Instrumentalists: Ron Murray, Sarah James | Movement Director: Balla Neba | Dramaturg: Declan Furber Gillick | Voiceover: Tahlee Fereday | Designer and Stage Manager: Shane Grant | Sound Designer: B.R. Keene | Costume Designer: Adrienne Chisholm | Cultural Advisor: Uncle Ron Murray | Producer: Sarah James | Writer: Brodie Murray
Soul of Possum
fortyfivedownstairs, 45 Flinders Lane, Melbourne
Season continues to 14 December 2025
Information and Bookings: www.fortyfivedownstairs.com
Image: Balla Neba – photo by Cameron Grant | art design by Emma Salmon