MACHINAL COMES TO SYDNEY

By Benjamen Judd

Theatre has to be one the hardest arts to not only appreciate but to also successfully pull off. The relationship between audience and actors is an integral part of the process and one that can never truly be duplicated even the greatest of films. Where are we going with this? Well, one of the greatest plays from America, Machinal, has been confirmed by the Sydney Theatre Company and we’re both terrified and thrilled at the opportunity to see it.

Receiving its Broadway premiere in 1928, the play, by playwright and journalist Sophie Treadwell, is based on the true story of a woman convicted of murdering her husband and sent to the electric chair.  Considered a high point of American Expressionist Theatre, the play’s strong proto-feminist stance was decades ahead of its time, tackling head-on the roles and societal expectations placed on women with a stark and innovative theatrical style.

Our 2012 Richard Wherrett Fellow Imara Savage will take on this touchstone piece in the Wharf 2 Theatre, our ‘lab’ for investigating new and innovative new theatre practices.

Machinal will run at the Sydney Theatre Company, Walsh Bay, from November 21 until December 7.

To check availability and to buy your tickets, head to there website here.