Creating and performing original South Australian plays
now showing
The Bakehouse Theatre
June 2 - 12, 2021
Basil Pepper is not ‘the man’. He’s not a doer, or a fighter. He’s not even much of a thinker. Besides his cruel name, Baz is average in every respect. World events pass him by, ideology makes him sleepy and the prime minister’s name eludes him. So, it comes as a surprise when Baz takes a sharp turn towards activism. The catalyst, as always, is a potential love interest...
Delia Dengel is sex in a muumuu, a self-proclaimed ‘flower grandchild’ who hands out copies of the Big Issue on Grote Street and lights a candle for any cause that tugs at her heartstrings. Baz is smitten, and it isn’t long before he begins to see the world through Delia’s eyes. That’s when the storm begins.
PRAISE FOR WATCHLIST...
"Alex Vickery-Howe’s Watchlist is amusing, ambitious, provocative, and a sharp reminder that the changes we know we need to make as global citizens will noPt be easy, even if we agree to them. This production eases us in with its comedy, but leaves us staring at a plateful of unpalatable options."
Murray Bramwell – Indaily
"A talented cast makes this a must see.Cloaked in mystery, Sortini shines as Delia. Sortini’s passionate angsty characterisation subverts the manic pixie dream girl trope as her relationship with Basil feels tangible despite the secrecy and strategy that lay beneath it. Noble’s portrayal of the boyish Basil becoming more confident throughout the show is brilliant."
Helen Karakulak - Adelaide Theatre Guide
"There are many gems which make Watchlist well worth the effort. Marie’s sharp tongue is a winner, while Norman’s shadowy character is a neo-noir triumph."
Peter Burdon - The Advertiser
"Watchlist is an outstanding and challenging piece of theatre that stays with you long after you’ve left the theatre. The ‘boy meets girl’ narrative turns from comedy to politics and back again so easily, yet it’s not satire: it’s a frustrated tale of the state of the world that signals virtue but actions nothing important, waiting for ‘some mythical grown-up to take care of it’. Whilst this play is a reflection of our own apathy we see in Roger, our resignation in Marie, and our fear of the surveillance-world through Norman in his many guises – this is a call to arms: to be captivated by the planet as much as Basil is by Delia, indeed, as much as Delia is by Basil, for us to say her words: ‘I wasn’t supposed to like you this much’."
Mark Wickett - Stage Whispers
"There is an era of smart, sassy, homegrown theatre upon us and Alex Vickery-Howe’s Watchlist is a darkly stupendous example...buy a ticket and see this show. This is what modern, thoughtful entertainment is all about..."
Steve Davis - The Adelaide Show Podcast
"We watch avidly the rise and rise of Alex Vickery-Howe as an Australian playwright of substance. His latest work, Watchlist, has been lurking under covers of Covid to at last be revealed as a thrill of living theatre. This is a brave, bold, agit-prop piece. It is a didacticism-enabler. It is a work of passionate, acerbic, satiric prose."
Samela Harris - The Barefoot Review
BUY TICKETS NOW
June 2 - 12, 2021
Basil Pepper is not ‘the man’. He’s not a doer, or a fighter. He’s not even much of a thinker. Besides his cruel name, Baz is average in every respect. World events pass him by, ideology makes him sleepy and the prime minister’s name eludes him. So, it comes as a surprise when Baz takes a sharp turn towards activism. The catalyst, as always, is a potential love interest...
Delia Dengel is sex in a muumuu, a self-proclaimed ‘flower grandchild’ who hands out copies of the Big Issue on Grote Street and lights a candle for any cause that tugs at her heartstrings. Baz is smitten, and it isn’t long before he begins to see the world through Delia’s eyes. That’s when the storm begins.
PRAISE FOR WATCHLIST...
"Alex Vickery-Howe’s Watchlist is amusing, ambitious, provocative, and a sharp reminder that the changes we know we need to make as global citizens will noPt be easy, even if we agree to them. This production eases us in with its comedy, but leaves us staring at a plateful of unpalatable options."
Murray Bramwell – Indaily
"A talented cast makes this a must see.Cloaked in mystery, Sortini shines as Delia. Sortini’s passionate angsty characterisation subverts the manic pixie dream girl trope as her relationship with Basil feels tangible despite the secrecy and strategy that lay beneath it. Noble’s portrayal of the boyish Basil becoming more confident throughout the show is brilliant."
Helen Karakulak - Adelaide Theatre Guide
"There are many gems which make Watchlist well worth the effort. Marie’s sharp tongue is a winner, while Norman’s shadowy character is a neo-noir triumph."
Peter Burdon - The Advertiser
"Watchlist is an outstanding and challenging piece of theatre that stays with you long after you’ve left the theatre. The ‘boy meets girl’ narrative turns from comedy to politics and back again so easily, yet it’s not satire: it’s a frustrated tale of the state of the world that signals virtue but actions nothing important, waiting for ‘some mythical grown-up to take care of it’. Whilst this play is a reflection of our own apathy we see in Roger, our resignation in Marie, and our fear of the surveillance-world through Norman in his many guises – this is a call to arms: to be captivated by the planet as much as Basil is by Delia, indeed, as much as Delia is by Basil, for us to say her words: ‘I wasn’t supposed to like you this much’."
Mark Wickett - Stage Whispers
"There is an era of smart, sassy, homegrown theatre upon us and Alex Vickery-Howe’s Watchlist is a darkly stupendous example...buy a ticket and see this show. This is what modern, thoughtful entertainment is all about..."
Steve Davis - The Adelaide Show Podcast
"We watch avidly the rise and rise of Alex Vickery-Howe as an Australian playwright of substance. His latest work, Watchlist, has been lurking under covers of Covid to at last be revealed as a thrill of living theatre. This is a brave, bold, agit-prop piece. It is a didacticism-enabler. It is a work of passionate, acerbic, satiric prose."
Samela Harris - The Barefoot Review
BUY TICKETS NOW
The middle way
SA Playwrights is proud to present our latest audio series broadcast on the Auscast Network.
Meet SUV driving, pedigree dog owning, mother of twins, Phillipa. Her daughter’s mental health requires intensive monitoring, husband’s ego constant stroking and she is forever reminded of her estranged Evangelical mother. Along comes Marcus, a devout born-again Buddhist, who brings with him the promise of new beginnings – if only her past would stop getting in the way. “Wherever you go, you take yourself with you.”
Check out the latest episode or catch up on the ones you missed HERE or find them where ever you get your quality podcasts.
Meet SUV driving, pedigree dog owning, mother of twins, Phillipa. Her daughter’s mental health requires intensive monitoring, husband’s ego constant stroking and she is forever reminded of her estranged Evangelical mother. Along comes Marcus, a devout born-again Buddhist, who brings with him the promise of new beginnings – if only her past would stop getting in the way. “Wherever you go, you take yourself with you.”
Check out the latest episode or catch up on the ones you missed HERE or find them where ever you get your quality podcasts.
the dear australia monologues:
'flesh' & 'unconditional love'
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In partnership with Playwriting Australia, SA Playwrights have produced two monologues, written by Lucy Combe and Matt Hawkins and filmed in isolation. These will be broadcast in July as part of Playwriting Australia's 'Dear Australia' program, which is a direct response to our changed and changing world, a way for playwrights to speak right now to what’s happening around us. It’s a collaboration with 25 small-to-medium organisations from across Australia.
You can watch the monologues HERE
You can watch the monologues HERE
bordertown
In collaboration with the Auscast Network, the smash Adelaide Fringe hit, Bordertown, is now an audio series!
Tune in HERE, or wherever you get your quality podcasts.
Tune in HERE, or wherever you get your quality podcasts.
COMING SOON
NEW Visions - staged readings
Staged readings are an integral part of the SAPT program. In the second half of 2021, we will be presenting two evenings of play excerpts from a range of writers to showcase pivotal scenes from evolving scripts. These nights are always a lot of fun and cause lively discussion, so why not come along, have a glass of wine, or suitable beverage of your choice, and be part of our story development process!
Carmel, a philosopher of the ‘third age’, is holding on to her university position by a tenuous thread; her daughters disappoint her incessantly and her undergraduate students remind her of all the ways in which feminism has failed. When upstanding ‘good wife and mother of three’, Mary is responsible for a shameful and seemingly out of character error of judgement, her hedonistic sister is begrudgingly led back to Adelaide from ‘no fixed abode’ to pick up the pieces. As the women’s lives entwine in unexpected ways, the foundations on which their identities have been created implode.
Coming early 2022
Coming early 2022
our AGENDA
It's time to tell our stories.
South Australian Playwrights Theatre is committed to developing and producing the works of local South Australian writers, both established and new. We seek to nurture a professional collective of playwrights, directors, actors and technical specialists to hone their craft and to network creative opportunities. Through this work we want to engage with our diverse communities and give them a voice on stage.
SAPT started with a bang after the critically acclaimed Frank Forbes and the Yahoo Boy in May 2018. It continued to develop great theatrical projects that year including the New Voices program, showcasing the work of twenty young writers. 2019 saw the production of The Middle Way and Bordertown at Holden Street Theatres; in addition to two seasons of staged readings, New Visions 1: Pushing the 4th Wall and New Visions 2: The Other.
South Australian Playwrights Theatre is committed to developing and producing the works of local South Australian writers, both established and new. We seek to nurture a professional collective of playwrights, directors, actors and technical specialists to hone their craft and to network creative opportunities. Through this work we want to engage with our diverse communities and give them a voice on stage.
SAPT started with a bang after the critically acclaimed Frank Forbes and the Yahoo Boy in May 2018. It continued to develop great theatrical projects that year including the New Voices program, showcasing the work of twenty young writers. 2019 saw the production of The Middle Way and Bordertown at Holden Street Theatres; in addition to two seasons of staged readings, New Visions 1: Pushing the 4th Wall and New Visions 2: The Other.
OUR TEAM
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Matt Hawkins is a playwright, screenwriter, lecturer and Artistic Director of South Australian Playwrights Theatre. He has spent the last twenty years not only writing and directing his own scripts but also developing the work of young actors and screenwriters. He has written extensively for the stage and television in Australia, UK and Ghana. His credits include Always Greener (7 Network), Life Support (SBS) and The Micallef Program (ABC). He was script editor, writer and show runner for the hit Ghanaian TV series Different Shades of Blue (GTV - Sparrow Productions). For SAPT he has written and directed Frank Forbes and the Yahoo Boy and Bordertown, for theatre and audio, as well as Unconditional Love for Playwriting Australia's Dear Australia project.
Lucy Combe is a playwright, copywriter, teacher and Creative Producer of South Australian Playwrights Theatre. She has been involved in theatre and performance since completing her bachelor of Drama Studies from Adelaide University in 1999. Subsequent production work included the founding of Newfangled Productions and the writing/directing of several plays including Searching for Solace. She completed a Diploma of Creative Writing from Birkbeck, University of London and spent many years in the UK working in Arts-based roles. For SAPT, she has written The Middle Way, published by Australian Plays as well as the audio serial for the Auscast Network, in addition to Flesh for Playwriting Australia's Dear Australia project. Alex Vickery-Howe is an award winning playwright and director/screenwriter. In 2008 he made his writing debut with Once Upon a Midnight a bilingual, bicultural horror rock musical in Okinawa, Japan, where it opened the Kijimuna Festival (and played to rave reviews and full houses, before selling out again at the Adelaide OzAsia Festival. His latest show, Out of the Ordinary, was published by Currency Press. His feature screenplay Stupid Dead Boy won the Australian Writers’ Guild ‘What’s the story’ screenplay competition. Recently, he completed an internship at StudioCanal working in screen acquisitions and script assessment/development. He holds a PhD from Flinders University, where he specialises in writing internationally for younger audiences. Pontsho Nthupi is an actor, poet, singer and voiceover artist, who has voiced various poetic works including: 'New girl', 'Do you believe in the spiritual' and 'I like hugs.' She is also a writer and avid media content creator; her material can be found on her YouTube channel, 'She's a Royal Priesthood.’ She recently appeared in the feature films Never too Late and Mortal Kombat. She is currently working on new content about the empowerment of women for her series, 'The Worth of a Woman.’ For the 2020 SANAA Festival (Adelaide Fringe), she presented at the street party and SANAA storytelling at The Bob Hawke Prime Ministerial Centre. She performs her poetry at Soul Lounge, Adelaide. Samantha Riley is a professional performer, voice/movement teacher and director. Samantha completed her Bachelor of Musical Theatre in Ballarat before heading to Melbourne to commence her theatrical career. Here she worked in independent touring shows such as The Best of Broadway and in independent plays including The Return. Her first professional show, The Boyfriend, was with The Production Company. She then went on the national tour of Annie with Anthony Warlow and Todd McKenney. In 2018, she launched her cabaret show, 'A Little Bit Extra' at the Adelaide Fringe. For South Australian Playwrights Theatre, Samantha directed Lucy Combe’s The Middle Way at Holden Street Theatres in January 2019. Katie O'Reilly has worked successfully interstate, overseas, and locally both on screen and stage since graduating from Flinders University in 2000. Some TV highlights have been playing Amelia Moon on Neighbours and guest roles on Stingers and Blue Heelers. While living in Ireland she had an ongoing role on RTE’s long running soap Fair City playing Zora McCarthy. Film credits include Caterpillar Wish and Fatty Finn. Katie has also been in many short films that have been entered in both national and international film festivals and has appeared in a number of TVC’s. For South Australian Playwrights Theatre Company, she has performed in productions of Bordertown and The Middle Way, for stage and audio. Lisa Harper Campbell is an actor, director, broadcaster, writer and academic. Highlights since graduating from Flinders Drama Centre include writing, performing and touring her own comedic solo show A Bee’s Dick Away, directing The Double Bass featuring Eddie Morrison, performing as Julie Bishop in the national tour of Abbott! The Musical, assistant directing Zabou Breitman’s Foolz, producing Foul Play Theatre’s production of Holly Brindley’s Julie, performing in numerous shows with Joh Hartog Productions and of course winning Hard Quiz on the ABC with her special topic, the French Resistance. She has obtained a doctorate in French Cinema from the University of Adelaide and lectures in French Studies, Screen Studies and Drama Critical Studies. Stephen Tongun is a graduate of Flinders University Law School, Steve is also an actor, MC and professional motivator. His outstanding theatrical performances over the last ten years have included Beckett for Independent Theatre, Don Pedro in Much Ado About Nothing and Oladoe Equiano in My Lover’s Eye by the Company of Muses; as well as starring in Frank Forbes and the Yahoo Boy and Bordertown (play and audio serial) for South Australian Playwrights Theatre. For screen, he recently appeared in the feature film Escape from Pretoria and ABC TV series Stateless. He is a member of the ‘SANAA: A better world through creativity’ team and frequently performs and presents at their events. |
PREVIOUS SHOWS
‘★★★★★ A rich, emotional, musical and theatrical performance…The smart, witty script combined with catchy song writing and brilliant performances illuminate the stage…’
Craig Cook, The Advertiser
‘★★★★ ½ This show offers a feast of musical variety from uplifting melodic vocal numbers that thrive on multiple voices, traditional African folk songs, rap, and even a little Bach…This was such an exhilarating show… A really joyful experience – great venue, great music, great performances.’
Michael Coghlan, The Clothesline Review
‘Truly thrilling…such an engaging piece of new Australian theatre. Highly recommended.’
Tony Knight, Stage Whispers
‘It’s special to bear witness to the first musical of its kind, exploring the lives of African diaspora in Australia. Pontsho Nthupi is a standout. She has the most phenomenal voice and is effortlessly charming onstage in this role… It’s catchy and very well produced.’
Natalie Carfora, Collage Adelaide
Craig Cook, The Advertiser
‘★★★★ ½ This show offers a feast of musical variety from uplifting melodic vocal numbers that thrive on multiple voices, traditional African folk songs, rap, and even a little Bach…This was such an exhilarating show… A really joyful experience – great venue, great music, great performances.’
Michael Coghlan, The Clothesline Review
‘Truly thrilling…such an engaging piece of new Australian theatre. Highly recommended.’
Tony Knight, Stage Whispers
‘It’s special to bear witness to the first musical of its kind, exploring the lives of African diaspora in Australia. Pontsho Nthupi is a standout. She has the most phenomenal voice and is effortlessly charming onstage in this role… It’s catchy and very well produced.’
Natalie Carfora, Collage Adelaide
AN EVENING WITH A VEGETARIAN LIBRARIAN
She might be a vegetarian, but she's also the Gen-X meat in the inter-generational sandwich of the modern workplace.
A mostly true, slightly made-up tale of thwarted ambition, underachievement, and a funeral in a library. A meditation on reading and an ode to life before the device.
She might be a vegetarian, but she's also the Gen-X meat in the inter-generational sandwich of the modern workplace.
A mostly true, slightly made-up tale of thwarted ambition, underachievement, and a funeral in a library. A meditation on reading and an ode to life before the device.
“This is a stunning new work...Highly recommended”
John Ovenden - The Weekender Herald
“★★★★ - 8.7/10 We have a fun and feisty addition to the library of the South Australian Playwrights Theatre”
The Adelaide Show Podcast
“★★★★ Beautifully choreographed…Bordertown is an entertaining and funny show, with strong and convincing performances all round”
Michael Coghlam – The Clothesline
“Engaging surrealist tone full of dreams and demons”
Peter Burdon - The Advertiser
“An absolutely wild ride… memorable characters, some good streaks of humour and a nice sharp barb pierced into the world’s tedious obsession with celebrity. Well-honed in production, it is a very nice night’s entertainment”
Samela Harris - The Barefoot Review
“The play is well-produced and acted, but perhaps equally important it is a great contribution from the South Australian Playwrights Theatre, which offers a refreshing take on local stories and places”
Global Media Post
“Lots of laughs and some deeper issues in a play which moves briskly and is delivered with flair”
Broadway World
John Ovenden - The Weekender Herald
“★★★★ - 8.7/10 We have a fun and feisty addition to the library of the South Australian Playwrights Theatre”
The Adelaide Show Podcast
“★★★★ Beautifully choreographed…Bordertown is an entertaining and funny show, with strong and convincing performances all round”
Michael Coghlam – The Clothesline
“Engaging surrealist tone full of dreams and demons”
Peter Burdon - The Advertiser
“An absolutely wild ride… memorable characters, some good streaks of humour and a nice sharp barb pierced into the world’s tedious obsession with celebrity. Well-honed in production, it is a very nice night’s entertainment”
Samela Harris - The Barefoot Review
“The play is well-produced and acted, but perhaps equally important it is a great contribution from the South Australian Playwrights Theatre, which offers a refreshing take on local stories and places”
Global Media Post
“Lots of laughs and some deeper issues in a play which moves briskly and is delivered with flair”
Broadway World
“New theatrical works by local writers are always a welcome commodity… especially when a play as fine as ‘The Middle Way’ makes it to the stage…it is a strong and highly satisfying work.”
Anthony Vawser…Adelaide Theatre Guide
“This team is very experienced…The Middle Way is as a delightful evening at Holden Street Theatres that I thoroughly recommend.”
Pamela Watts…Broadway World.
‘It's a tremendous night out, with a sharp and witty script... Every now and then, a brilliant actor emerges...Such is the case with Stephen Tongun.’
John Ovenden ....Hills Magazine
‘...this is a genuinely funny play... A great show...An entertaining and funny story that deserves to be told…’
Michael Coghlan...The clothesline.com.au
‘…a heart-felt play… a beautiful story, well executed by cast and crew, which will leave you with a smile and a tear.’
Nicola Woolford…Glam Adelaide
'Deftly played, and directed by the writer with a light touch, Frank Forbes and the Yahoo Boy is a delight...'
Peter Burdon. The Advertiser
‘“Frank Forbes and the Yahoo Boy” is blowing the cobwebs away from the dark and dusty corners of Adelaide theatre and bringing us delightfully into the modern day.
Stephen Tongun is an absolute standout as Ishaku. His performance is electric and endearing…’
Maggie Wood… Adelaide Theatre Guide
‘...writer/director Matt Hawkins brings mature insight and a perceptive eye to his multi-dimensional story. He also regularly manages to make us laugh – sometimes uproariously!
Can a piece of theatre cross cultures and manage to entertain audiences all along the demographical spectrum? Can it do so by combining elements of serious drama and character detail with almost-farcical comedy? This one certainly can.’
Anthony Vawser...Stage Whispers
John Ovenden ....Hills Magazine
‘...this is a genuinely funny play... A great show...An entertaining and funny story that deserves to be told…’
Michael Coghlan...The clothesline.com.au
‘…a heart-felt play… a beautiful story, well executed by cast and crew, which will leave you with a smile and a tear.’
Nicola Woolford…Glam Adelaide
'Deftly played, and directed by the writer with a light touch, Frank Forbes and the Yahoo Boy is a delight...'
Peter Burdon. The Advertiser
‘“Frank Forbes and the Yahoo Boy” is blowing the cobwebs away from the dark and dusty corners of Adelaide theatre and bringing us delightfully into the modern day.
Stephen Tongun is an absolute standout as Ishaku. His performance is electric and endearing…’
Maggie Wood… Adelaide Theatre Guide
‘...writer/director Matt Hawkins brings mature insight and a perceptive eye to his multi-dimensional story. He also regularly manages to make us laugh – sometimes uproariously!
Can a piece of theatre cross cultures and manage to entertain audiences all along the demographical spectrum? Can it do so by combining elements of serious drama and character detail with almost-farcical comedy? This one certainly can.’
Anthony Vawser...Stage Whispers
The SA PLAYWRIGHTS PODCAST
Checkout the SA Playwrights Podcast! In each episode, Matt interviews different South Australian writers and performers and tries to get to the bottom of what dramatic storytelling is all about.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN
