Shack Digital Program

Written by George Kemp

“The Earth needs us to fight for it”

—Ernie

Shack, 2022. Photos by Clare Hawley.

ATYP would like to acknowledge that we are a company that works and creates on the traditional lands and waters of the Gadigal people, and we are grateful to be telling stories on First Nations country that has such a rich history of storytelling.

We pay our respects to Elders past and present.

ShackA Young Industry Studio Production

Written by George Kemp

Season

25—27 November 2022

The Rebel Theatre

Eora Country Pier 2/3 Suite 2, 13A Hickson Road Dawes Point NSW

Duration 70 minutes (no interval)

Age recommendation 8+ Production content Dim lighting, theatrical haze, loud sounds and music.

Writer George Kemp

Director Hayden Tonazzi

Dramaturg Jane FitzGerald

Set and Costume Designer Angela Doherty

Lighting Designer Morgan Moroney Sound Designer (Mentor) Chrysoulla Markoulli

Sound Designer (Mentee) Natalie Wihandono

Stage Manager Emily Johnson Assistant Director Tahlia Merlino Assistant Stage Manager Ellie Park Assistant Stage Manager Louis Fetting

Young Industry Studio

With Chloe Harnish-Rojas

Timofey Prakhiy

Alexander Cheung Eloise Bendall

Mia Denine Madison-Rose Koniseti Felix Fox Tahlia Sturzaker Eloise Jones

And Becc Ayalon Ewan Constable Jeffrey Dimi Sienna Spence Annie Rose Thomas Jacob Townsend Billy Nicolau Emily Harriss Willow Seager

Cover photo supplied Design Justin Stambouliah

ATYP’s Young Industry Studio Workshop programs are designed for experienced young creatives who want to take their skills to the next level. Learning from industry professionals, the ATYP Young Industry Studio brings the arts industry and young people together to grow and develop the creative leaders of the future.

Participants in the ATYP Young Industry Studio programs learn valuable skills and techniques that enhance not only their performance and theatre-making ability but provide valuable connections with the arts industry and their peers. Across a range of disciplines, these programs provide practical training in a challenging, creative and collaborative ensemble environment.

ATYP Foundation Commissions

The ATYP Foundation was established in 2003 to create and maintain a capital fund to ensure the future of the national youth theatre company and to enable it to reach many more young Australians. In the unpredictable world of Arts funding, the ATYP Foundation offers stability and permanence to Australia’s oldest theatre company dedicated to young people.

In 2010 the ATYP Foundation made a commitment to supporting the commissioning of new Australian plays for young people to perform. In 2012 this support was formalised in the establishment of the ATYP Foundation Commission Award. To date, the ATYP Foundation has supported the creation and development of 17 plays.

Director’s note

Shack celebrates the bravery that young people must front every day. Not only the bravery required to discover who you are and what you stand for, but also generational bravery as young people band together to fix what is wrong with the world around them. It has been an immense privilege to explore this world with these 18 performers, and together we have created an urgent piece of theatre asking our audiences to listen to and trust our young people. They have a lot more to give than we currently let them.

Shack is also a reminder that we must continue to foster opportunities for our youth to create on stage. These opportunities wouldn’t exist without the support of our audience and the tireless staff working behind the scenes. Thank you for allowing storytelling for young people to continue.

Hayden Tonazzi

Writer’s note

There is something uniquely thrilling about watching young people put on a play. The acting is just the tip of the iceberg. Underneath, the real work is occurring. During rehearsals, the young actors develop their own sense of teamwork, humour, creative and critical thinking, and social skills. But most importantly, they’re practising empathy — that all-important quality that comes with stepping into another’s shoes, in another world.

Shack is about all these things. Each of the characters in this play is learning agency and it has been a privilege to watch every one of these young actors gently hold the hand of their character, trying valiantly to push into the uncharted territory of their personality and plant the flag that says “this is me”.

George Kemp

—Hayden

Shack, 2022. Photo by Clare Hawley.

“It’s a great journey about how to really hold on to what you believe in and how to be brave for those ideas”

Creative Team

George Kemp (He/him) Writer

George is a Sydney based writer, actor, director and educator. He trained at London’s Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. He has appeared on stage in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead and Cyrano de Bergerac for Sydney Theatre Company, Othello and The Taming of the Shrew for Sport for Jove, As You Like It and Henry V for Pop-Up Globe, Longing for The Hampstead Theatre (UK), The Bowl for The Young Vic (UK), The Play That Goes Wrong and Peter Pan Goes Wrong, as well as work on screen nationally and internationally.

As an educator and director, George works at Australian Theatre for Young People, National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA), Bell Shakespeare, Sport for Jove, Brent St. Studios, Excelsia College and McDonald College. As a writer, his credits include Greta (Sydney Fringe) and As Hamlet Likes It (Sport for Jove and McDonald College), as well as fiction and nonfiction contributions to Sweaty City Magazine and Audrey Journal. George also worked as dramaturg on the stage adaptation of Tanya Hennessy's best-selling young adult book Drumroll Please, It’s Stevie Louise

Hayden Tonazzi Director

Hayden graduated from NIDA’s Master of Fine Arts (Directing) program and is an Associate Artist at the Kings Cross Theatre. As Director their recent credits include Tell Me Before The Sun Explodes for Kings Cross Theatre, Significant Other for New Theatre, This Genuine Moment for La Mama Theatre & Old 505 Theatre, and Miracle City for NIDA. As Assistant Director their credits include Follow Me Home for ATYP, The End Of Winter for Siren Theatre Company, Heroes Of The Fourth Turning for Outhouse Theatre, and Starstruck: The Musical for RGM Productions. They have completed Directorial Placements on Moulin Rouge for Global Creatures, HOSH: La Traviata for Opera Australia, and The Bridges Of Madison County for Hayes Theatre Company.

Jane FitzGerald (She/her) Dramaturg

Jane is the Resident Dramaturg at ATYP.

As Dramaturg for ATYP: M.Rock (2022), Lights in the Park, CUSP, Bathory Begins, April Aardvark, Impending Everyone, Charlie Pilgrim (or a Beginner’s Guide to Time Travel), WonderFly, Intersection 2019: Arrival, Intersection 2018: Chrysalis; for ATYP and Ensemble Theatre: The Big Dry; for ATYP and Sydney Theatre Company: M.Rock (2014); for Ensemble Theatre: Black Cockatoo, Appleton Ladies’ Potato Race, Fully Committed; for Merrigong Theatre Company: Lost Boys; for Sydney Theatre Company: Volpone, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Festival of the Dreaming).

Previous Positions Literary Manager for Ensemble Theatre, Sydney Theatre Company; Artistic Associate for Sydney Theatre Company; Administrator for the Patrick White Playwright’s Award, Sydney Theatre Company; Script Reader for Royal Court London, Playwriting Australia, Australian National Playwrights Centre, Playworks.

Jane has also mentored year 12 students on HSC creative writing projects for 15 years.

Angela Doherty Set and Costume Designer

Angela Doherty is a Sydney based multi-disciplinary designer, textile artist, and graduate of the Design for Performance BFA at the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA). Driven by an interest in people and emotion, Angela’s work is often cerebral and abstract, and always true to character and text.

Recent theatrical design credits include Machinal (dir. Carissa Licciardello) as part of NIDA’s 2022 October Production Season, Iphigenia in Splott (dir. Lucy Clements) at Flight Path Theatre and girl friend (dir. Claudia Barrie) at Belvoir 25a. Her work in textile art and costume making has led to work for projects at Opera Australia, Belvoir St Theatre, and all across the film and television industry. Theatre). As Video Designer for A Letter for Molly (Ensemble Theatre). As Co-Lighting Designer for Cleansed (Redline Productions).

Morgan Moroney (He/him) Lighting Designer

Morgan Moroney is a lighting and video designer working across theatre, opera, dance and installation. Growing up on Kaurna land, he currently lives and works primarily on Bidjigal and Gadigal land. He brings a distinct multidisci plinary approach to his prac tice, with a particular fasci nation for integrated-media live performance.

Training NIDA.

Awards APDG Emerging Designer for Live Performance 2021.

Recent

As Lighting Designer for Anatomy of a Suicide (Sugary Rum Productions), The Barber of Seville (Opera Australia), and Jali (Sydney Festival). As Lighting and Video Designer for Art + Information (Seymour Centre), A Practical Guide to Self-Defence (National Theatre of Parramatta & Merrigong Theatre). As Video Designer for A Letter for Molly (Ensemble Theatre). As Co-Lighting Designer for Cleansed (Redline Productions).

Chrysoulla Markoulli Sound Designer (Mentor)

Chrysoulla Markoulli is an award-winning composer and sound designer with a passion for telling stories through music and sound. A 2021 Sydney Theatre Awards Nominee for Best Composition and Sound Design for an Independent Production, Chrysoulla has been creating with theatre and screen makers since 2016, with clients such as Belvoir St Theatre, Griffin Theatre Company, ATYP and Rogue Projects.

Recent credits include The Fairytale of My Life (2022), Tom At The Farm (2022), Tell Me Before The Sun Explodes (2022), Burn Witch Burn (2022), Before The Meeting (2022), Hot Mess (2021), Jali (2021), Mary (2021), The Linden Solution (2021), Dead Skin (2021), Barnacle Face (2020), CNUT (2020), My Brilliant Career (2020) and Iphigenia In Splott (2020).

Natalie Wihandono Sound Designer (Mentee)

Natalie Wihandono is a 4thyear University of New South Wales student currently studying a Bachelor of Music degree, specialising in composition in the Creative Music Practice stream. She began playing the piano at a young age, which sparked an interest in music. However, her passion for composition developed in high school where she mainly composed for solo piano. Since entering university, she has delved into several areas of composition, such as chamber works, orchestral works, jazz composition, production using digital audio workstations and performance art. Natalie was recently selected as a 2022 Artology Fanfare winner for her composition Carnival

Creative Team cont.

Emily Johnson Stage Manager

Emily Johnson is currently the Workshop Trainee at ATYP. A lover of theatre since before she can remember, she’s thrilled to have Shack as her first experience in the role of Stage Manager. Emily found her passion for performance at a young age and has developed an equal passion for technical production and management. Emily also frequently works with The Arts Unit Drama for the Department of Education and is excited to add more credits to her bio in the near future.

Tahlia Merlino (She/her) Assistant Director

Tahlia Merlino is an actor and theatremaker currently based in Sydney, Australia. A NIDA-trained actor and graduate of 16th Street’s 2020 Professional Full Time Acting Program, she now works with ATYP and NIDA as a teaching artist. Theatre credits include New Theatre’s The Park (2022), Factory Space Theatre Company’s A Peculiar River (2019) and The House That Dan Built’s Tender Young Creatures (2017/18). She is also currently working on a devised piece SOL. as part of NIDA’s Festival of Emerging Artists. Following her NIDA graduation in 2018, Tahlia was also a full-time performer at Luna Park Sydney. She has a great love for devising and working with young people and is thoroughly enjoying her first gig as an Assistant Director for Shack.

Ellie Park Assistant Stage Manager

Louis Fetting Assistant Stage Manager

“Being different also makes you strong”

—Jasper

Shack, 2022. Photo by Clare Hawley.

Huskies

Chloe Harnisch-Rojas Ernie

Eloise Bendall Sadie

Felix Fox Rufus

Timofey Prakhiy Mack

Mia Denine Samson

Tahlia Sturzaker Elliot

Alexander Cheung Jasper

Madison-Rose Koniseti Luca

Eloise Jones Jamie

Penguins

Becc Ayalon Ernie

Sienna Spence Sadie

Billy Nicolaou Rufus

Ewan Constable Mack

Annie Rose Thomas Samson

Emily Harriss Elliot

Jeffrey Dimi Jasper

Jacob Townsend Luke

Willow Seager Jamie

Shack, 2022. Photos by Clare Hawley.

Biggest thanks goes to our entire creative team for your enthusiasm and so willingly and joyously bringing your time and talents to the project. You have all played a part in the development of this show, of our cast and your fellow creatives, some of whom were taking on new roles for the first time and we couldn’t have asked for a better team. George Kemp, your show is beautiful and we are so glad it found a home in the Young Industry Studio program. This show could not have happened without the support of Paperjam Productions, especially Taryn Brown. Huge thanks to the entire ATYP team (especially the Marketing and Production teams) for getting behind us, helping us navigate the path and cheering us on. After two long years, it is a genuine thrill to present a Foundation Commission show on an ATYP stage again.

Lastly, thank you and congratulations to our wonderful Husky & Penguin casts. You have taken these characters, made them your own and brought this beautiful show to life. We are all so proud of what you have accomplished and we hope you are too. To echo George, you’re all legends. The future is in good hands.

– Claudene Shoesmith, Workshop Manager

Shack, 2022. Photos by Clare Hawley.