Noosa Arts Theatre has come back with a vengeance this year after such a strange 2020 Covid year.
They had the audiences laughing in the aisles with ’A Turkey’s Tail’ and dancing in the aisles for a successful run of Mamma Mia.It’s time now to stage their popular One-Act Play competition for the 44th year with three great plays all on the one programme.
First up is ’The Truth About Camping’ written by New South Welshman, Gavin Critchley.
So, who hasn’t been camping? Putting up the tent (why does there always seem to be a few poles left over?), burning your meal on the campfire, mozzies, sleeping bags that are either too hot or too cold, and that’s if you even find a level spot! This will remind you of all the joys of roughing it in the great outdoors.
When Dorothea Mackellar wrote, “I Love A Sunburnt Country“ she wasn’t pulling any punches. Most of us may know someone affected by the savage bushfires of 2020, or have had first-hand experience of their fury and unpredictability. Noosa certainly got a huge scare as well. The second play on the programme ’Embers’, written by Victorian, Natalie Burns, is an emotional roller-coaster that will leave you gasping as you come to terms with the all-consuming reality of bushfires and the unquenchable human spirit.
And for the final play, what’s not to love about Christmas? All that preparation, decorating the tree, the house, the front yard, buying that unique gift and getting stuck talking to a slightly “merry“ relative you only see once or twice a year. What about that turkey? Is it ready? But what happens when there is a an even bigger issue at hand? New Zealander, Richard Harris, has penned a yuletide romp with his one-act play, ’Carol’s Christmas’ that will leave you wanting seconds.
Since 1978 Noosa Arts Theatre has been running the National One-Act Playwriting Competition.
With the Nimmo Prize for best play worth a cool $5000 it attracts entries from playwrights from all over Australia and many other countries. Scripts are judged anonymously by a professional panel of three industry experts.
The finalists are selected on the quality of the writing, not on subject matter. The audience is also asked at each performance to vote for the “Nancy Cato Audience Choice Award”.
Presentation of awards takes place after the final performance.
Dates: Cut price Preview May 20 at 7.30pm, all tickets $23. Evenings May 21, 27, 28 at 7.30pm. Matinees May 22, 23, 29 at 2pm. Tickets: Adults $32, Concessions $28, Member/Group $25, U18 $23.
www.noosaartstheatre.org.au or via 5449 9343.
