12 to 19 November 2005

in the Studio Theatre

Cosi

by Louis Nowra

directed by Jett Tattersall

Lewis, a young first-time director, is hired to direct a play as part of a therapeutic programme meant to keep the inmates of an asylum interested and to 'bring them out of their shells' as Justin, a social worker, puts it. Unfortunately for Lewis, Roy has decided on Mozart's Cosi Fan Tutte, not just an opera buffa, but an Italian one. Of course, none of the few volunteers can speak Italian, much less sing - indeed some can barely speak. To make matters worse, the venue for this performance is a fire-gutted theatre with a leaking roof and faulty wiring. The cast includes a pyromaniac, a junkie, a knife- wielding romantic, a confused realist, a Lithium-addicted pianist who hates Mozart and a stuttering ex-lawyer who refuses to take part in the production. Lewis, needless to say, is slightly discouraged by the task at hand.

The time is 1971. The play is set in a Melbourne (Australia) mental institution.

Review