Tilt 2

Tilt 2 is the second part of a performance series by WAAPA Performance Making students, and is their final independent project as they near the end of their studies. The second program features 6 performance pieces, all written, devised, directed and performed by the students.

Opening the second program is the bitter-sweet puppet drama Wendy, written by Jacob Sgouros. A beautiful, almost wordless story, the star of this play is the gorgeous puppet “Wendy”, designed by director Lily Murrell and operated (mostly) by Eliza Smith. Wendy is an elderly woman who fills her days with spying on her neighbours. The show also features some very effective shadow puppetry. Performed by Delaney Brooklyn Burke and Jacob Sgouros, it features composition by Kira Gunn, with dramaturgy by Shae Leslie Watkins.

Cupid is an effective mono-play written and performed by Ben Sullivan, and nicely directed by Delaney Brooklyn Burke. An insight into who Cupid is as a person (or being), this was expertly acted and performed with lovely pace. Particularly loved the costuming for this one, which was simple but inspired. There was a lovely silent cameo from Leah Selwood.

In Doghouse we meet Jo, who is upset because her flat-mate has forgotten her birthday, until her dog, Bunny, puts things into perspective. Once again, nicely directed by Delaney Brooklyn Burke, this was written by believable central performer Lucy Wong, with a charming performance by Jacob Sgouras as Bunny, and strong support from Lindsay McDonald.

Archival, written by central performer Clea Purkis, is set in the future, as a worker listens to "The Old Earth Podcast” as it describes extinct concepts such as birds and parks - and she is drawn into her imagination. A beautifully acted, silent performance from Clea Purkis, and lovely narration from Jacob Sgouras. The sound design (also Clea Purkis) is beautiful, with lovely, clear direction from Jefferson Nguyen. Leah Selwood and Nathan Calvert provide support.

The stars have aligned with The Great Cosmic Conjunction, a nice piece of fun in which Mars and Uranus seek to answer the audience’s questions about life and the universe. Performed from the doorways, because the planets are too wide to get through the door, it stars two very personable performer devisors - Asteria Gow and Beth Wilkinson - and is directed with a sense of the bizarre by Shae Leslie Watkins and features composition by Ashton Weaver.

It seems appropriate to end this series with Everything Flickers which is somewhat of a protest piece about Australia’s reluctance to prioritise the arts. Written and directed by Eliza Smith it features three very passionate performers - Clea Purkis, Nathan Calvert and William Gammel. A show with a lot of important messages, it is also very creative and visually impressive.

I look forward to this cohort’s swan song - a puppetry production at Spare Parts Puppet Theatre in a few weeks time. This is a graduating class with a very promising future and I expect to see their work burst forth in the next few years.

Kimberley Shaw

Photographer: Stephen Heath