STRICTLY BALLROOM

■ Rehearsals are well under way for PLOS Musical Productions' July-August season of the all -Australian musical Strictly Ballroom The Musical, which will open at the Frankston Arts Centre on July 28 for a limited season.

Strictly Ballroom The Musical is the inspiring story of a championship ballroom dancer who defies all the rules to follow his heart.

This uplifting and courageous tale originated as a stage play that Baz Luhrmann created as a student at the National Institute of Dramatic Arts in Sydney back in 1984.

Mitchell Smith will star as Scott Hastings in PLOS's show, while cast in the role of Fran is Guada Bañez.

Baz Luhrmann’s Strictly Ballroom The Musical includes songs such as Love Is In The Air, Time After Time and Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps. Along with new musical numbers written by among others, including Eddie Perfect.

Performance Details: July 28 for a limited season

Venue: Frankston Arts Centre, Davey St., Frankston

Tickets available www.plos.asn.au

- Cheryl Threadgold

The Culture

■ The Culture, a new Australian play by Laura Jackson, is performing at Theatre Works Explosive Factory as part of an Australian and New Zealand tour.

Presented by Sydney based theatre company Powersuit Productions, The Culture is a story about deep and enduring friendship and the pitfalls ... and sometimes dangers, of finding love in a modern world.

Set in Sydney, Australia, the play follows the story of best friends Katie and Will who are roommates, childhood friends, podcast hosts and very single.

The Culture tackles their search for romantic love and demonstrates that sometimes even those with the strongest convictions can lose themselves easily in complex new relationships.

Their two very different experiences as a gay man, and a straight white woman take them through falling in love, the complexities of handling domestic violence with a loved one and ultimately test their friendship.

The warmth and intimate banter between two best friends welcomes audiences into Will and Katie’s living room and into an important wider conversation.

The cast includes Laura Jackson and Mina Asfour, with direction by Bethany Caputo

Laura Jackson says: 'We're not afraid to tackle some tough issues including domestic violence, homophobia, and disordered eating, but at its heart this is a story about friendship. About support. About looking out for the people we love. We’re also addressing important themes with a light touch. Expect lots of laughs, a few surprises, and an ending that packs a punch.”

Performance Details: Until June 17 at 7.30pm

Venue: Theatre Works Explosives Factory, 67 Inkerman St, St Kilda

Duration: 75 minutes, no interval

Bookings: https://www.theatreworks.org.au/ 2023/the-culture

- Cheryl Threadgold

Bleached

■ Wit Incorporated Theatre presents Bleached, opening on June 22 at the Bluestone Church Arts Space, Footscray.

Written by Melbourne playwright Laura Collins and described as 'an absurd and revolutionary new work speculating on a future ravaged by a climate catastrophe, Bleached is directed by Ruby Rees.

Laura Collins says: “My intention in writing Bleached was to explore our responses to environmental guilt.

“By portraying a dark vision of the future, where nations and individuals have cut themselves off from the rest of the world and are plunged into a never-ending lockdown, I want to inspire proactive action, and shake a progressive audience out of its collective apathy and moral paralysis.”

Wit Incorporated commits to bringing high-