THE LUCKY COUNTRY
Hayes Theatre Company, Sydney
The Lucky Country is a rollicking chamber musical that digs deep into the idea of Australia, identity and belonging.
We meet Boy, a 13-year-old Thitharr Warra boy, whose youthful optimism is dashed when he clashes with his classmates’ notion of ‘our shared history’. It sparks a journey of self-actualisation that leads him back to class to deliver a profound truth.
While Boy is grappling with the fault-lines in our national story, we are introduced to a collection of all-Aussie characters: grey nomads who find love crashing a Contiki tour; a Chinese Australian restauranteur who dreams of life as a Byron Bay nudist; a young refugee in Mingoola; a WW2 veteran; an aspiring actress, and an all fake-Russian choir, to name but a few.
The Lucky Country is a bold and timely new work that gives a voice to those typically marginalised in our conversations about Australian identity and history. Cathartic, heartfelt and playful in turn, this is a powerful 70 minutes of theatre featuring an ensemble of six exceptional performers and a five-piece band (including yidaki – didgeridoo), illuminated and amplified by kaleidoscopic audiovisual design.
A celebration of a new vision for who we can be as Australians.
director - Sonya Suares
writer - Vidya Makan
musical director & orchestrator - Heidi Maguire
choreographer - Amy Zhang
cultural advisor: -Amy Sole
with - Joseph Althouse, Dyagula, Milo Hartill, Jeffrey Liu, Vidya Makan (May 26 – June 3), Ava Madon (June 5 – end of season), Kristal West, Karlis Zaid
set and costume designer - Emily Collett
lighting designer - Rob Sowinski
video designer - Justin Harrison
sound designer - Michael Tan
associate lighting designer - Lucia Haddad
stage manager - Anastasia Mowen