Download State Theatre Company of South Australia

State Theatre Company of South Australia
State Theatre Company of South Australia is the state's flagship professional
theatre company performing an annual season of classic and contemporary
Australian and international theatre works at its main performance home – the
Dunstan Playhouse. The Company is a major community and cultural
resource for all South Australians and is vital to artistic life in the state.
State Theatre Company also plays an important role in the bigger picture of
the Australian theatre scene, contributing touring productions and providing
employment and career opportunities for artists and technical and
administrative staff. We are committed to the development of new works for
the stage and to the development of South Australian artists through our
creative fellowship programs.
Throughout our 35 year history, the Company has played a pivotal role in the
careers of many of Australia's leading actors, writers and directors, attracting
artists of the calibre of Neil Armfield, Ruth Cracknell, Judy Davis, Gale
Edwards, Mel Gibson, Geoffrey Rush, Jim Sharman, Hugo Weaving and John
Wood.
EDUCATION PROGRAM
2008 marks the launch of an exciting new series of educational opportunities
available to young people. We’re committed to encouraging the next
generation of audiences and artists, so whether you’re a teacher or a student,
we want to enrich your understanding of theatre and inspire your
imaginations. It’s a fundamental and valued part of our work.
Our Education Program is all about explaining how theatre works, how plays
come to life in the hands of actors, directors and designers of all kinds. We
want to keep the magic alive but unlock some of the mysteries - or just to help
make the words on the page less cryptic.
We’re here to encourage, illuminate and inspire you. You don’t have to want
to make a career out of it to enjoy the journey with us. Just come on over to
our space and play. It’s habit-forming!
Adam Cook
Artistic Director
PRODUCTION CREDITS
Ruby Moon
By Matt Cameron
Director
Designer
Stage Manager
Lighting Design
Sound Designer
Cast
Lizzie Falkland
Craig Behenna
Geordie Brookman
Morag Cook
Kerry Ireland
Kerry Ireland
Catherine Oates
- Sylvie (the mother)
- Dulcie (the spinster)
- Veronica (the singer)
- Dawn (the babysitter)
- Ray (the father)
- Sid Craven (the clown)
- Sonny Jim (the soldier)
- Carl Ogle (the inventor)
THEMES & ISSUES
-
Guilt
Grief & Loss/Emotions
Fear of the Unknown
Suburban Life
Play within a play
Naturalism vs Fairytale
Circular Patterns – emotions, repetition
Relationships - Parent – Child & Husband – Wife
Personality traits
Tension and Release
PLAYWRIGHT – Matt Cameron
An award-winning playwright and screenwriter, Matt’s plays include Tear
From A Glass Eye, (winner of the Wal Cherry Play of the Year Award) with
productions by Playbox, Black Swan and the Gate Theatre in London, where
he was nominated for the Evening Standard Awards; Footprints On Water,
winner of the British Council International New Playwriting Award with
productions by Neonheart, Griffin and La Mama; Mr Melancholy, winner of the
ANPC/New Dramatists Award with productions by Griffin, La Boite,
Chameleon, New York Stage & Film in New York, Theatre de l’Erre in Paris
and Teatr Ad Spectatores in Poland; and The Eskimo Calling, produced by
Neonheart and Belvoir B Sharp.
Matt has also written Hinterland, nominated for the NSW Premier’s Literary
Award; Man The Balloon, nominated for the Victorian Premier’s Literary
Award; and a short play Whispering Death which were all produced by
Melbourne Theatre Company.
Ruby Moon was nominated for the Queensland Premier’s Literary Award and
has been produced by Sydney Theatre Company, Playbox, Neonheart,
Northern Stage in England and Théâtre Claque in Switzerland.
Screen credits include Seachange, Crashburn, Newstopia, script editor for
Kath & Kim and co-creator/co-writer/director of AWGIE award-winning
Introducing Gary Petty.
What was your initial inspiration in writing the play Ruby Moon?
By some degree, the various headlines in the newspapers. Sadly those sorts
of headlines are a constant, but for some reason there may have been a
number of them at the time which sparked me. A missing child is such a
universal tragedy with a primal impact. It arouses such potent emotions in the
people that it immediately affects, and then beyond that, to communities. I can
read a story from the other side of the world concerning a missing child and it
still has a powerful emotional effect so empathy is not just about proximity.
The challenge with Ruby Moon has been finding a way of writing a play that
told a fictional story about a missing child that was distinctive because in
some ways it is familiar territory.
Workshops were part of the writing process, how useful is the workshop
process?
The original actors definitely impacted on the writing process in so far as we
had discussions and workshop readings of the play at its various stages of
development where their contributions were definitely noted by me. Whether it
was just listening to a rhythm in their speech or, more directly, with them
offering an idea or an improvised line that I would pounce on.
How do you feel having a different director, company and actors
performing your play?
When you write a play you can’t be precious to the point of wanting to hold
onto every production that might ever be staged. I think it’s really important
that a play gets to go out on that journey and be produced in other contexts
without the playwright grasping onto it too tightly.
New productions can also be great in terms of learning about the play by
seeing other actors, other directors and designers. I think that ultimately plays
have to be re-interpreted. It’s always interesting for me when I see another
production of a play beyond the first one because I learn more from seeing
how people approached it without my direct involvement.
Were there any particular themes or concepts you wished to highlight in
the play Ruby Moon?
On some level, although it’s probably obscure, I felt like the play was about
the prevailing fear of our times. I was trying to get beyond the fear of losing a
child and actually look at the nature of that unease, that dis-ease that lurks
and hovers in the world that we live in at the moment.
How would you describe the style of your play?
Gothic, absurd, nightmarish, surreal. I make a conscious effort in writing a
play to make it theatrical and abstract. I think there are playwrights who do
naturalism brilliantly, so I leave that territory to them. However, I think that
playwrights who don’t do naturalism well are responsible for boring theatre.
So if I can’t write great naturalism then I would rather not write it at all. Ruby
Moon is written, therefore, in the style that I favour which is a type of
heightened naturalism. It is still very much predicated on universal human
emotions but isn’t directly about topical events or specific places, but hopefully
evokes them.
The way I write plays all comes back to when I was first taught at school
about the metaphor and the simile. I remember the teacher saying that a
simile is where one thing is said to be ‘like’ another whereas a metaphor is
where one thing is said to ‘be’ another. My imagination was instantly drawn to
the metaphor.
The idea is that hopefully there is room in the play for an audience to
associate what they see on stage – however strange – with their own lives. To
give them room to imagine and make connections and find a truth from it that
is specific to them.
Did you envisage a particular space or set for Ruby Moon?
When I was writing Ruby Moon, I imagined the literal landscape, knowing that
we would be representing that on stage, and that we’d be trying to trigger that
image. So I was trying to imagine a street in my head which had these old,
dark trees and street lamps, with pockets of light and vast shadows. I was
imagining a street at night even though the story of Ruby’s disappearance
begins on a screamingly hot summer’s day.
Overwhelmingly the street felt to me like a street that probably looks pictureperfect during the day but at night suddenly becomes frightening and
portentous. I grew up in the sad, bare, outer suburbs. This particular image,
though, was probably more inner suburban with old deciduous trees, a really
established suburb. So I imagined that real, natural world and then imagined
the context for it on stage. I started to imagine a room, a room that was
arrested in time because, for these parents, the loss of their child has caused
everything to stop and has allowed the dust to accumulate. I imagined that
everything was locked in a time warp.
Using similar themes to Little Red Riding Hood, Ruby goes into the
woods but, in this case, she doesn’t return. Is this what you were
thinking?
It’s strange with the ‘woods’ because the play takes place in a street called
Flaming Tree Grove, one that is lined with flame trees and, I have a
confession to make, I’m sure I have seen flame trees but I really can’t picture
specifically what they are. Typical of my lack of research and wilful ignorance,
I preferred not to know. I just like the name of them. In a way I’m not even
literally imagining a street with flame trees, it’s more the idea of them – that
when the sun sets on this street the trees look as if they’ve caught on fire. I
was trying to imagine a pastiche rather than a specific landscape, one that
was poetically evocative.
What do you see as being the role of playwrights in our society?
I think it’s about demanding our own relevance. I have no belief that
playwrights are intrinsically important and that they should be listened to. That
privilege needs to be earned and demanded by the quality of the work. To me,
playwriting is about telling stories in a way that is distinctive from other story
telling forms. It’s about making the theatre a place people feel compelled to go
to in order to hear a story told in a way that they could not find in a book or on
television or in film. So I see the role of the playwright as being one of trying to
tell stories distinctively and using all the virtues of the theatre to do it.
Beyond that I think the role of the playwright is to challenge the
homogenisation of thought. I write for television as well and in writing for
television there are so many more people putting their fingers into the pie.
Often the result is diluted and diminished. So, the theatre to me is still this
pure world where you can actually tell the story as you would like to tell it.
Is a playwright’s role potentially a powerful opportunity?
Absolutely! Sometimes the most dangerous aspects of ourselves are revealed
in the theatre. Beyond that, in a more general sense, I strongly feel the role of
the playwright is to move audiences, to deeply move them. Because in the
theatre the audience is sharing the same space as the storytellers there is
such potential for connection. It’s a waste if you’re not trying to work at the
most extreme and powerful ends of the spectrum. There’s no point being timid
in the theatre because it’s just a wasted opportunity.
What do you think audiences will enjoy the most about Ruby Moon?
Being transported into another world, the feeling of mystery and intrigue... and
relishing the chameleonic abilities of the actors.
DIRECTOR – Geordie Brookman
What attracted you to Ruby Moon?
I think on my first read of the script what attracted me was the way Matt had
managed to make a discussion of such a universal theme, grief, work on such
an intimate level. One of the first things I look for in a play is whether it creates
its own little world, a space and time slightly separate from everything around
it, Ruby Moon certainly has this quality.
On a performance level it was an attractive piece to work on because of the
amount of transformation it involves. The play contains a wonderful challenge,
how can you create an entire street full of people just using a few props? It’s
invigorating when you come across material like that.
What do you want the characters to reveal throughout the show?
I suppose the central thing I want to ‘reveal’ is that every instance of grief is
an incredibly individual experience. Through the characters in Ruby Moon we
want to illuminate some of the effects of grief. Every character in the play has
lost something or someone and that loss has changed them as people. The
other central concept that we want to shed some light on is the patterns or
repetitions people can get stuck in after experiencing trauma.
How does this affect the blocking process?
Well, given we are dealing with a number of highly eccentric characters a
large part of the blocking process is quite free, quite open. The nature of the
play means that the performers have to take a lot of risks, committing 100% to
some very strange characters. An important part of the process has been
discovering the different physicalities for each character, how they move, how
they hold their energy.
In terms of the wider stage picture the main affect on the blocking is the fact
that we are utilising circular shapes and finding gestures and pictures that we
can repeat and degrade over the course of the play.
How different is it to approach rehearsals with 2 actors playing various
roles? Did you brief the actors in any way?
It doesn’t affect things too much. Most actors are use to playing multiple
characters. The most important thing is ensuring that all the characters are
different enough. As we have a slightly shortened rehearsal process on the
project I did ask the actors to have a few ideas in terms of voice and
physicality ready to go on day one.
How does a director help create pace and rhythm with the text?
It often depends on the play you are working on. With a piece like Ruby Moon
there is already a very strong sense of pace and rhythm within Matt’s writing
so part of the job is done for you. One the whole the director needs to ensure
that the emotional pace of the scene matches up correctly with the pace of the
delivery.
Often changes may be as small as encouraging actors to take a breath or
give themselves a slight pause in the midst of a certain line. Pacing is usually
something that is negotiated differently by every director and cast but getting
the rhythm of dialogue right is a little like conducting music.
How did you work with the designer to come up with the feel and style
for the set and costumes?
Morag (the designer) and I went through a process over a number of months.
To start with we just talked generally about the play and things like colour
scheme. As we got more of a feel for the characters and themes in the play
clues started to emerge in terms of what sort of world we wanted to create on
stage. Our key sources were a number of old, silhouette drawings from
fairytale books and a Francis Bacon picture, Seated Figure. So we mixed
together these more abstract ideas and sources with the practical
requirements that the play and tour demands and the set emerged from there.
Our central logic was based around the idea that everything you see on stage
could be found somewhere in a single, suburban home
Have you tried to create a uniquely Australian element to the play? If so, how?
Not particularly. As I mentioned before one of the strengths of the play is its
universal theme, I guess it picks up Australian elements purely by the fact that
we are Australian artists working on it presenting it to Australian audiences.
We did want the costumes to echo what some people would call ‘Howard’s
Australia’, a sense of nostalgia for the 1950s.
Do you have your own thoughts or opinion of what happened to Ruby?
I do but it probably wouldn’t help anyone to reveal them. Despite the fact that
the question of what happened to Ruby carries the play’s suspense it’s not
really what the script is about.
I imagine Sylvie comes closest when she says:
She was probably taken and . . . hurt.
It’s kind of impossible to get more specific than that.
How did you get a career in directing?
I acted all the way through high school and started making short films when I
was in year 12. I realised pretty quickly that I liked being behind the camera
more than in front of it. So I applied for and got into the directing course at
Flinders University Drama Centre, which is where my focus shifted to directing
theatre. After finishing at Flinders I started directing plays in the Adelaide
Fringe and working as an Assistant Director for more established directors. It
sort of rolled on from there!
DESIGNER – Morag Cook
What elements of design have you used to create mood and atmosphere
for Ruby Moon?
A theatre designer must be able to communicate visually a wide range of
themes. Most of these themes have to work on an almost subconscious level
in order to not detract from the action on the stage. Designers have a large
range of ‘tools’ at their disposal. We use all of the mediums related to visual
arts such as colour, texture, scale, symbolism and concept to create an
environment, which is appropriate to the play.
How did you work with the director to come up with the feel and style for
the set and costumes?
Any design process ultimately begins with a reaction to the material to be
produced (in this case a script). The director and I had an initial discussion,
which was very open and loose about what the play might be about. Themes
began to become apparent on the first read and we came to discussions with
a varied set of images in response to the script. We talked in terms of colour,
visual imagery (paintings that we loved), films and symbols.
Second and subsequent meetings were dedicated to developing a concept.
This was the creation of the confines that define the play and it was an
opportunity to come to a shared vision of what the work will leave with the
audience. I began to dream within these confines and try to produce visual
components that underpinned the conceptual intentions in three dimensions.
It was at this time that I begin to integrate the very important technical
requirements of the production into my thought processes. Thinking about
budget, venue specifications, time line and labour ultimately helped to make
the realisation of the design much more achievable and these factors did
influence the final product.
Working with all of these considerations, I immersed myself in the creation
process and focussed on representing all of the conceptual ideas in the set
and the costumes. Geordie would offer input, I would reassess and work back
into the design until he felt that I had given him every thing that he needed for
the play, performers, and audience alike.
What is the greatest challenge with costumes in this production?
The writer is clear that the costumes should be minimal. The performer has a
series of very quick costume changes on stage and the flow of the production
should not be stoped at these times. I had to conceptually make sense as to
why they change on stage. The greatest challenge was to produce costumes
that have the strongest character impact both for the audience and the
performer alike with out being too complicated.
What is the greatest challenge with the set in this production?
I think the greatest challenge is that the set will be touring to eight different
venues. It has to be able to make a large impact but also take no longer than
one hour to be bumped into the venue. The venues are all different with
varying seating configurations, loading dock doors, rigging capabilities. All of
these factors have to be considered during the design process.
What influences did you use in the design process?
Geordie and I were very drawn to a number of visual images in the designing
of the play. Our visual influences were old black and white block printed
children’s illustrations (tradition European fairy tale), a painting by Francis
Bacon (seated figure1961), writings by Angela Carter, 1950’s clothing,
traditional theatrical imagery (red velvet curtains for example) and the
voyeuristic world of the peep show.
What are some essentials to think about before designing any play?
The director has a number of factors to consider. What will the space that the
designer created, offer the director and performers as a playing field? What is
the audiences relationship to the playfield? (eg. is the space intimate) Will the
performers be able to function in the space? Will the design support the action
rather than be purely visual? Lastly, who is the audience?
The designer must consider not only all of the above, but budget, venue, time
line, labour costs and how to physically produce the elements.
How did you get involved in design?
I was trained as a pattern cutter and dressmaker. I worked for a year at State
Opera Company of South Australia as a seamstress and then at South
Australia Film Co as head pattern cutter. I worked with the designers closely
and began to be very interested in Design.
I had been involved in theatre in some way or another for a great many years
and it seemed like a natural progression to enter the designing field (I found
this so much more exciting.)
I gained a position in the Advanced Diploma of Design for Live Production,
Theatre and Events at Centre For Performing Arts in Adelaide. This gave me
the opportunity to meet amazing designers who were working in the industry
who challenged my perception of what the designer does. I feel that this time
at college was about learning skills and when I graduated I began to develop
a philosophy and a deeper sense of the purpose of theatre and my place in it.
SET DESIGN FOR RUBY MOON
Look at and discuss the set design for Ruby Moon
.
- How does it help create the mood for the performance? (Think about design
elements including; line, shape, colour and atmosphere.)
The designer has talked about some of the elements she has gained
inspiration from to design the set and costumes;
- How have the black and white fairy tale illustrations been used?
- Research the painting “Seated Figure” by Francis Bacon and note any
similarities in style between the painting style and the set.
- Discuss how the red curtain was used and how effective it was in
creating the various images throughout the show.
SOUND DESIGNER – Catherine Oates
Catherine has worked as a musician, composer and sound designer for over
15 years. She is an award winning recording artist and producer,
encompassing many styles of music, numerous instruments and roles
throughout her diverse career.
Highlights so far include composer/performer in Special Delivery and Sharon,
Keep Ya Hair On (Patch Theatre Company), composer/performer in Precious
2000, Continual Unfolding of Now in 2006 (Restless Dance Company),
composer / performer for Soaring (Cirkidz and Kurruru Youth Indigenous
Performing Arts), composer for Checklist for an Armed Robber in 2006 and
Love in 2007 for Vitalstatistix, Boston Marriage in 2004, Frozen in 2005 and
Triple Threat in 2007 for the State Theatre Company of SA.
She has performed with The Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, in State Theatre
Company’s production of Cabaret, and many bands.
She continues to be sought after as a performer, musical collaborator,
adviser, producer and composer.
ACTORS
Lizzie Falkland
When did you first become interested in acting?
At School. I had a really dedicated and inspiring teacher in high school, but I
think I always had an interest in storytelling even when I was very young.
What training have you done?
I have a BA in Performance from The University of Western Sydney. I also try
and keep learning and training by doing workshops with artists I admire and
am keen to grow and stretch as a performer.
Every show is an opportunity to keep growing and expanding as an actor and
observer of life. It’s a work in progress!
What attracted you to Ruby Moon?
I was immediately drawn to the writing, I laughed and cried when I read the
play. It’s complex and layered with some fabulous characters to sink your
teeth into. It’s a lovely challenge to bring the audience on the journey of Sylvie
and Ray.
How do you prepare to play the different characters in Ruby Moon?
Lots of experimentation and playing! Thinking about real life people who may
resemble aspects of the characters. I also work on vocal and physical
characteristics of each individual.
What do you think happened to Ruby?
I think it’s better if it remains a mystery. As in real life, there aren’t always neat
and tidy answers to everything.
What advice would you give to someone who is interested in a career on
the stage?
Keep an open mind. Foster your imagination and creativity by reading, writing,
seeing shows and films and generally observing life in all its complexity. Find
out what kind of training is available, here and interstate.
Talk to people who’ve been to different drama schools. Training helps refine
your techniques and teaches you different methods of approach to
performance. There are some great courses available for young people
interested in direction and designing too.
Even if you don’t want to be a professional actor, having an understanding of
performance can help you in all walks of life. Acting is really a branch of
psychology. You learn about what makes different people tick, including
yourself.
Craig Behenna
When did you first become interested in acting?
I was six and my parents let me listen to the Goon Show on the ABC. I loved
Peter Sellers and Spike Milligan. I started watching lots of old movies – I
always liked old-school actors like Dirk Bogarde and Alex Guinness.
What training have you done?
I went to the Flinders Drama Centre and spent some time at Guildford School
of Acting in the UK.
What attracted you to Ruby Moon?
I think the range of characters and its language. It has a rhythm that helps us
get ‘into’ the flow of the play.
How do you prepare to play the different characters in Ruby Moon?
It’s important for me to start with the voice. The voice suggests the character’s
mood, body and personality. Also reading the whole play many times and not
just the individual character scenes was important to fit the character into the
overall show.
What do you think happened to Ruby?
I don’t know! The characters I’m playing don’t know, it’s a mystery to them.
They’re all trying to find out what happened and it would make a mess of it for
me if I tried to solve the mystery.
What advice would you give to someone who is interested in a career on
the stage?
Read as much as you can. Do lots of work on you voice and your physical
skills. Be very clear about the kind of acting you want to do and learn the
different styles, philosophies and so on, that underpin them. If you have a
thorough understanding of the history of what you’re doing you’ll have a much
better range of choices you can make when you’re acting.
Study people as much as you can – people do some weird and amazing
things and it will broaden your perspective about what’s ‘real’.
Bring your own energy to what you do. Study actors you like and work out
what you like about them, then find your own version of what they do. Make it
your own.
Don’t be afraid to try other things – you may find you have a talent as a
director, a writer, a producer as well as acting. This also helps get an
understanding of what everyone else does.
TO GET A PLAY STARTED
AUDITION PROCESS
For the auditions for Ruby Moon actors were asked to prepare 3 scenes from
the show because of the need to be different characters/personalities.
Each audition was approximately a half hour with a male and a female actor
working with each other on these scenes.
The male actors read the scene with Sylvie and Sid and needed to show
through different voices and body language how they could become this
disturbed character.
The female actors read the scene with Veronica and Ray. With this character
they needed to show the sexier more predatory side of femininity.
Then together they read part of the final scene between Sylvie and Ray,
which is highly emotionally charged.
Throughout the scene the director may ask them to try something different.
This can help with seeing how an actor relates to direction and can also help
the actor understand the portion of the script.
The majority of actors at these type of auditions prepare ahead by reading the
full script and learning the lines for the scenes they have been asked to
prepare. Some actors also like to bring in their own props.
REHEARSAL PROCESS
Rehearsals run for 3 weeks and then there is a technical run of the show in
the theatre. In rehearsals actors are given time to develop their characters,
block the scenes and work on lines.
Roles at rehearsals:
The director;
- Directs actors on; voice and physicality of characters, the emotions of
each character and can help with the depth and background creation of
a character.
- Works on line delivery
- Ensure the flow of scenes
- Makes sure all the elements of set design, costumes, lighting and
sound come together
- Ultimately they create the whole vision of the show.
Stage manager
- Organises rehearsal schedule
- Keeps cast time sheets
- Coordinates with the Director and Designers
- Liaise closely with the Wardrobe department for cast fittings
- Takes notes during rehearsal
- Marks out floor space in rehearsal room
- Organises technical specifications
- Organises Bump-in & Bump-out of theatres and call times for cast and
crew
The tech run works with lighting and sound, the full set and props and
costumes are used. This helps ensure the timing of sound and lighting cues
for the stage crew and the actors.
MEDIA/RESEARCH
There have been many famous cases of child disappearances; The
Beaumont children, Azaria Chamberlain, Rhianna Barreau and recently
Maddie McCann.
Research newspaper articles, text or plays that deal with missing children in
Australia.
1. Discuss the fears, emotions and media hype that surrounds these stories.
2. Why do you think parents become suspects in these crimes?
3. Why do you think these stories are so closely followed in the media?
4. What do you think happens to these parents who never find the answer to
their child’s disappearance?
5. What affect do you think losing a child has on the parent’s relationship with
each other – or with their other children?
FAIRYTALES
There are many fairytales that explore the concept of a missing or lost child.
• Wizard of Oz
• Little Red Riding Hood
• Alice in Wonderland
• Goldilocks and the 3 Bears
• The Pied Piper
• Hansel and Gretel
1.
2.
3.
4.
What do these stories have in common?
Why do you think this theme is so popular and recurring?
Why is it so often a little girl?
How does the story of Ruby Moon link some of these fairytale images
into the play?
Create a short play focusing on the families of one of the missing children,
using the above fairytales as you story guide.
In your play discuss;
- How they find their child missing
- What they do to find their child
- Make sure you show what type of emotions they go through
AUSTRALIAN DRAMA
What images in the performance of Ruby Moon make it uniquely Australian?
Think about characters, themes, metaphors, language, setting, cultural
context, atmosphere and identity.
The sense of neighbourhood in Australia is quite strong. Describe your
neighbourhood in terms of characters and relationships.
Which of these images would you change if you performed it overseas?
STRUCTURE/FORM
Ruby Moon follows the story of the parents Ray and Sylvie as they search for
the answers to the mystery of their missing child, Ruby. The parents retrace
Ruby’s footsteps as they play the various neighbours. This has become an
expression of their emotions, eg; sexual, sad, depressed.
The play echoes Brecht style in that it has many circular patterns.
- How the characters repeat the same process of the neighbours;
- The circular style of the set;
- How they create more and more damage as they continue the circle.
Each scene is in a different place, although the setting for the play remains
similar, with only minimal changes. What changes of the set did you think
worked well for each character?
There are many lingering images of Ruby, although she is never seen in the
show. These are in lines such as;
Scene 1 – DULCIE: [As the parrot] Aark, where’s the pretty girl…?;
Or in tableau
Scene 3 – The Ruby mannequin stands under street light.
What other images of Ruby are discussed or seen throughout the play?
GRIEF
Long-term grief can break people down; make them feel empty and
completely exhausted. This play shows that both parents want answers. Are
there none to find?
Discuss the following;
Did Ruby really disappear? Was there really a Ruby to begin with?
How long do you think it is since Ruby disappeared?
Why do they portray all their neighbours are potential suspects?
Sylvie accuses Ray timidly, do you think that the emotions and the repetition
of this story break down their trust of one another?
How does Sylvie try to convince us as an audience and herself that Ray is
guilty? How does Ray turn this around?
What type of acting/directing or staging techniques are used in the final scene
to create this exhaustion from the characters?
What do you believe happened to Ruby?
ACTIVITIES
1. Write a short scene for one of the parents with a different character
Eg. Ice Cream seller, Police, Grandma
What elements of the character’s personality have you included in this new
character?
2. Write an ending to the story. This could be a monologue of the father’s
discovery; or from the point of view of a kidnapper; or an outsider explaining
how the family have or have not moved on.
3. Discuss the circular nature of the script and setting. Explain why you think
Ruby’s parents replay their investigations over and again?
4. How is the story like a traditional fairy tale narrative? What visual elements
bring this to life?
6. How is the tension created throughout the play?
7. How has the set design included the outside & inside space? Eg. Lamp for
inside & street lamp outside. Coat stand is an echo of the trees outside.
8. Discuss the costume design. How well did each change to the costumes
help convey the character they assumed?
We certainly hope you enjoy the production of Ruby Moon and we welcome
any feedback to [email protected]
Regards
Robyn Smith
Education Coordinator
Acknowledgement;
Sydney Theatre Company – teacher’s notes for Interview with Matt Cameron,
supplied by Matt Cameron.
Website;
www.google.com
www.wikipedia.com
- missing children
- fairytales
- Francis Bacon
- Brecht (circular patterns)