Media release – Mudlark Theatre, 26 June 2024
Mudlark Theatre proudly present the world premiere of new Tasmanian theatre work
The Box is an explosive new Tasmanian play from the powerhouse union of award winning palawa artist, Nathan Maynard, and murri-born, nipaluna raised artist Rob Braslin.
“Creating new work is the heartbeat of Mudlark Theatre. The Box has been three years in the making and is a deeply collaborative theatre work. Over this time, we’ve had the privilege of working with the exceptional talent and vision of Nathan Maynard and Rob Braslin, alongside a remarkable creative team, to realise the production.” – Jane Johnson, Mudlark Artistic Director
Based in Launceston on the banks of kanamaluka (Tamar) River, Mudlark is an artist-led theatre company committed to the production of authentic new Australian theatre that will inspire and challenge audiences and the next generation of regional theatre-makers.
The Box is a significant First Nations-led theatre work and will premiere at the Earl Arts Centre, Launceston before touring to Burnie and Hobart. The show is presented by Theatre North, Theatre Royal and Burnie Arts, and is a landmark theatre event in lutruwita.
Set in a fictional housing commission suburb of Bowendale, the story of The Box draws us into the home and family of a single mother Mandy and her two hardened ‘Bowey boy’ sons. This story is a relentlessly real, daringly comic and profoundly moving theatre experience, uncovering the painful truths and actions that define one family’s existence inside a government experiment.
A complex and compelling family drama, The Box rages at the fragility of our lives, lives balanced on a knife edge, revealing the courage it takes for many to persist and survive, let alone ‘dream outside the box’.
“This story needs to be told because theatre is not a safe space for people from housing commission areas. It’s never going to be a safe space until we see ourselves onstage.” – Nathan Maynard, co-writer and director
Mudlark is committed to ensuring a diversity of stories and experiences on our stages. The Box is relentlessly real and achingly human and with that comes some very confronting content but it is also a theatre experience filled with love, humour and hope. It is a deeply personal and complex story of one Australian family, written with care, compassion and humour, and a real love and knowledge of them. Stories like this have been marginalised from Tasmania’s mainstream theatre experience. This project seeks to address this profound imbalance of voices and galvanise action.
Mudlark is working to help make theatre a safe and accessible space by working to break down boundaries and perceptions that keep people off the stages and out of the audiences. Through generous support from TasNetworks and Kinetic we are able to connect more people with theatre in their community by providing free tickets and transport to performances of The Box.
Theatre North are also partnering with Mudlark to facilitate a theatre tour and further community engagement and join us in the aim of making our theatre’s accessible and welcoming to more people, to ensure everyone can experience and play a meaningful role in the cultural landscape of Tasmania.
“Nathan and Rob have created a bold contemporary Australian theatre work, a story not currently being seen on our stages, featuring an incredible team of Tasmanian artists. It is surprising, compelling, “must-see theatre”. – Jane Johnson, Mudlark Artistic Director
SHOW DETAILS
THE BOX
Written by Nathan Maynard and Rob Braslin
Directed by Nathan Maynard
Featuring Corey Saylor-Brunskill, Nelson Clay, Harrison Collis Oates and Carrie McLean
LAUNCESTON
Earl Arts Centre
24-27 July
BURNIE
Town Hall, Burnie Arts Centre
31 July – 1 August
HOBART
Studio Theatre, The Hedberg, Theatre Royal
7-8 August
