PLAYLAB'S QLD SYLLABUS SUGGESTIONS 2022
UNIT 1: SHARE (NON-LINEAR)
The following list of plays has been curated by Playlab Theatre’s staff in order to provide an extended list of plays suitable for study in Unit 1: Share. The following titles include a wide-range of works that explore and share understandings of the human experience in a range of cultures including; Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, those from the Asia-Pacific region, and refugees and asylum seekers.
The following titles also explore a hybridity of conventions and forms in storytelling practices. For convenience, we have separated the plays that uses non-linear dramatic forms and linear dramatic forms.
The Daly River Girl
by Tessa Rose
THEMES: Stolen Generation, Domestic Violence, Resilience, Hope, Empowerment
LENGTH: 60 minutes
CAST SIZE: 1
CHARACTER AGES: 40s
SUITABLE FOR: Senior Years
SYNOPSIS
... Read moreThe Fever and the Fret
by Jub Clerc
THEMES: Loss, Family, Resilience
LENGTH: 90 minutes
CAST SIZE: 3
CHARACTER AGES: 20s–50s+
SUITABLE FOR: Senior Years
Blue Bones
by Merlynn Tong
LANGUAGE: English, Mandarin, Malay and Hokkien
THEMES: Domestic Violence, Relationships, Self Empowerment
CHARACTER AGES: Young Adult
LENGTH: 90 Minutes
CAST SIZE: 1 – 2 Cast Members
SUITABLE FOR: Senior Years
When a woman finds scars left by her ex-boyfriend of many years etched into her bones, she begins a turbulent journey to unpack her past and discover how he got ... Read more
The Belonging Trilogy
by Margi Brown Ash
THEMES: Belonging, Home, Not-Belonging,
LENGTH: 1.5 Hours
CAST SIZE: 1–2
CHARACTER AGES: ≤50
SUITABLE FOR: Adults
The Campaign
by Campion Decent
THEMES: LGBTQIA Rights, Australian Politics
LENGTH: 1.5 Hours
CHARACTER AGES: Adult
CAST SIZE: 5-6
TARGET AUDIENCE: Senior Years
Driving Into Walls
by Suzie Miller
THEMES: Youth, Drugs, Sex, Self-representation
CHARACTER AGES: 18-21
LENGTH: 1 Hour
CAST SIZE: 5 – 6 Cast Members
SUITABLE FOR: Senior Years
OneFiveZeroSeven
by Suzie Miller
THEMES: Youth, Drugs, Sex, Self-Representation
CHARACTER AGES: 18-21
LENGTH: 1 Hour
CAST SIZE: 5 – 6 Cast Members
TARGET AUDIENCE: Senior Years
The Longest Minute
by Robert Kronk and Nadine McDonald-Dowd
THEMES: Family, Identity, Sport
LENGTH: 1.5 Hours
CHARACTER AGES: 18–55
CAST SIZE: 5-6
TARGET AUDIENCE: Senior Years
The Longest Minute by Robert Kronk and <... Read more
Magpie
by Elise Greig
LANGUAGE: English and Romani
THEMES: Cultural heritage, Intergenerational trauma, Immigration
LENGTH: 1.5 Hours
CAST SIZE: 4
SUITABLE FOR: Senior Years & Adults
Melek Mo Hani
by Steve Mayer-Miller
THEMES: Cultural Identity, South Sea Islander Themes, Immigration, Deportation
CHARACTER AGES: Adult
LENGTH: 1.5 Hours
CAST SIZE: 1 – 2 Cast Members
TARGET AUDIENCE: Middle Years
TARGET AUDIENCE: Senior Years
TARGET AUDIENCE: Adult
Oedipus Doesn’t Live Here Anymore
by Daniel Evans
THEMES: Family, Community, Tragedy, Loss
CHARACTER AGES: 18-40
LENGTH: 1.5 Hours
CAST SIZE: 5 – 6 Cast Members
TARGET AUDIENCE: Adult
Prize Fighter
by Future D. Fidel
THEMES: War, Loss, Refugees, Trauma
CHARACTER AGES: 10 – 60
LENGTH: 1 Hour
TARGET AUDIENCE: Adult
CAST SIZE: 5 – 6 Cast Members
Still Point Turning: The Catherine McGregor Story
by Priscilla Jackman
THEMES: LGBTQIA, Identity and Love
LENGTH: 120 Minutes
CHARACTER AGES: 18+
CAST SIZE: 6 (doubling is required)
SUITABLE FOR ADULTS: Adult
Priscilla Jackman's Still Point Turning: The Catherine McGregor Story is an ... Read more
The Village
by Multiple Playwrights
THEMES: Refugees, Asylum Seekers, Immigration
LENGTH: 90 Minutes
CHARACTER AGES: 18+
CAST SIZE: 7
SUITABLE FOR: Senior Years & Adults
The Village is a collaboration between La Boite Theatre Company and MDA, and features stories from <... Read more
Viral
by Hayden Jones and Sam Foster
PLAYLAB'S QLD SYLLABUS SUGGESTIONS 2022
UNIT 1: SHARE (LINEAR)
Playthings
by Scott McArdle
THEMES: Coming-of-Age, Family Trauma, Bullying
LENGTH: 90 Minutes
CHARACTER AGES: 13-40s
CAST SIZE: 4
SUITABLE FOR: Middle Years
Scott McArdle's Playthings is a heartfelt coming of age story of homework, ... Read more
Lights in the Park
by Alexander Lee-Rekers
THEMES: Coming of Age, Bullying, Friendship and Revenge
LENGTH: 80 Minutes
CAST SIZE: 13
SUITABLE FOR: Senior Years & Adults
Winner of the 2018 Senior ATYP Foundation Commission, Lights in the Park by Alexander Lee-RekersRead more
Bogga
by Rob Pensalfini
THEMES: Corruption, Death, Friendship
LENGTH: 120 Minutes
CHARACTER AGES: 30s–50+
CAST SIZE: 5
SUITABLE FOR: Senior Years & Adults
Rob Pensalfini's Bogga is a fascinating work based on oral histories ... Read more
Rising
by Hannah Belanszky, Madeleine Border, Emily Burton, Lauren Sherritt and Sarah Wilson
THEMES: Climate Change, Extinction, Politics and Governance
LENGTH: 90 Minutes
CHARACTER AGES: 20s–40s
CAST SIZE: 3
SUITABLE FOR: Senior Years
Rising by Hannah Belanszky, Read more
Black Cockatoo
by Geoffrey Atherden
THEMES: Johnny Mullagh and Australian XI, Racism, Colonial Power
LENGTH: 90 Minutes
CAST SIZE: 6
SUITABLE FOR: Middle & Senior Years
Inspired by the true story of legendary First Nations cricketer Jonny Mullagh and Australia's first ever international sporting team, this is not just about cricket. This is a story of ... Read more
From Darkness
by Steven Oliver
THEMES: Spirituality, Family, Grieving
LENGTH: 70 minutes
CAST SIZE: 5
CHARACTER AGES: 16–50+
SUITABLE FOR: Senior Years & Adults
SYNOPSIS
It’... Read moreThe Holidays
by David Megarrity
THEMES: Family, Memory, Intergenerational Relationships
LENGTH: 80 minutes
CAST SIZE: 3
CHARACTER AGES: 10–40s+
SUITABLE FOR: Middle Years
SYNOPSIS
The Holidays are on holiday: 12-year-old Oliver has been pulled out of school ... Read moreBastard Territory
by Stephen Carleton
THEMES: Family, Identity
CHARACTER AGES: Adult
LENGTH: 150 Minutes
CAST SIZE: 5 – 6 Cast Members
SUITABLE FOR: Adult
Bastard Territory is a confessional human drama about a man – and a city – carving out an identity. Mixing wry humour, raw insight, a dash of Tennessee Williams and a killer 60... Read more
Bukal
by Andrea James with Henrietta Marrie
THEMES: Contemporary Indigenous Theatre
LENGTH: 60 Minutes
CAST SIZE: 3 – 4 Cast Members
SUITABLE FOR: Senior Years
From the rainforest to the world arena, Bukal is a story of an amazing woman. From the heart of Cairns Yidinji people comes the inspiring story of a courageous woman ... Read more
The Dead Devils of Cockle Creek
by Kathryn Marquet
THEMES: Environmentalism, Ideology, Compromise
LENGTH: 1.5 Hours
CAST SIZE: 3 – 4 Cast Members
TARGET AUDIENCE: Adult
Head Full of Love
by Alana Valentine
THEMES: Indigenous Health, Love, Cultural Divisions
CHARACTER AGES: 50+
LENGTH: 1.5 Hours
CAST SIZE: 1 – 2 Cast Members
Medea
by Suzie Miller
THEMES: Love, Passion and Revenge
LENGTH: 120 Minutes
CHARACTER AGES: 18+
CAST SIZE: 4
SUITABLE FOR: Senior Years & Adult
Suzie Miller's Medea takes on Euripides infamous tale of a woman ... Read more
Pale Blue Dot
by Kathryn Marquet
THEMES: Aliens, Relationships, Conspiracies
CHARACTER AGES: 15+
LENGTH: 2 Hours
TARGET AUDIENCE: Senior Years
TARGET AUDIENCE: Adult
CAST SIZE: 3 – 4 Cast Members
The Pineapple War
by Lachlan Philpott
THEMES: Oppression, Revolution, Influence
CHARACTER AGES: 16 – 23
LENGTH: 1.5 Hours
CAST SIZE: Large Cast Without Doubling
SUITABLE FOR: Senior Years
It’s 2022 and Queensland is now part of China to resolve a civil war. The rest of Australia has become Nation One, with a conservative government and a return to ... Read more
Sugarland
by Rachael Coopes and Wayne Blair
THEMES: Indigenous Themes, Regional Australia, Displacement, Growing up
CHARACTER AGES: 16 – 18, Adult
LENGTH: 1.5 Hours
TARGET AUDIENCE: Senior Years
This Heaven
by Nakkiah Lui
THEMES: Family, Justice, Anger, Indigenous Deaths in Custody
CHARACTER AGES: 19 – 50
LENGTH: 1.5 Hours
CAST SIZE: 5 – 6 Cast Members
TARGET AUDIENCE: Adult