The Darlinghurst Theatre Company in New South Wales have announced they will be producing Nick Enright‘s final major play: A Man With Five Children. This theatrical piece was first written in 1999, which pre-empted the current discussion on reality TV and public obsession with manufactured celebrity.
This production chronicles the lives of dive diverse Australians, who become celebrities via reality TV, and are held in the public eye from childhood through to adulthood. In this tale, Gerry is a documentary maker who sets out to capture the lives of five children on film. One day a year, every year, until they turn 21. As the children’s hopes and heartaches are played out on national television for the public’s entertainment, questions are raised. Is Gerry an observer or is the camera distorting their lives? Are the participants his subjects, his children or his creations? But as long as it makes for good television and the public still want it, Gerry just keeps on filming.
A Man With Five Children is inspired by the documentary 7-Up, which has followed a group of British children every seven years since they were seven years old. To date, eight documentaries have been made under the “Up” series: Seven Up, 7 Plus Seven, 21 Up, 28 Up, 35 Up, 42 Up, 49 Up and 56 Up.
The cast of this production includes Jemwel Danao (Empire: Terror on the High Seas), Chenoa Deemal (QTC’s The 7 Stages of Grieving and Mother Courage), Charlotte Hazzard (TV’s Winter, Love Child), Jody Kennedy (The Business), Ildiko Susany (Bell Shakespeare’s Henry V,A Midsummer Night’s Dream) Anthony Taufa (STC’s The Golden Age, Orlando), Aaron Tsindos (Cyrano De Bergerac and Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead for STC), Jeremy Waters (The Aliens, Jerusalem) and Taylor Wiese (Wolf Creek TV series).
Working behind the scenes is Anthony Skuse (Director), Georgia Hopkins (Production Designer), Chris Page (Lighting Designer), Tim Hope (AV Designer), Katelyn Shaw (Sound Designer) among other talent.
Those interested in watching A Man With Five Children will be able to starting June 3rd, when the show enters previews. The show will then enter its main run starting June 7th and run until June 26th. Tickets can be purchased online, with prices varying from $30 and $45.
