Award winner next up for La Boite
Right: Hugh Parker and Lucas Stibbard
Heralded by New York Times as ‘the most adventurous downtown playwright of her generation’, writer Young Jean Lee will have her Queensland premiere with Straight White Men at the Roundhouse Theatre from 27 July to 13 August.
Obie Award-winning Young Jean Lee’s play is brought to you by La Boite Theatre Company in collaboration with State Theatre Company of South Australia.
Tackling identity politics and detonating cultural norms the script tells the story of recently widowed Ed who welcomes home his three middle aged sons for Christmas. Among the hi-jinks and repartee, they must confront a problem that even a happy family can’t solve: when identity matters, and privilege is problematic, what is the real value of being a straight, white man?
The work asks the question: What do we want straight white men to do that they’re not doing? And what happens when they do that? Lee has said “The question I was asking myself when I was working on the show was: ‘Am I using the straight white man as an excuse to not have to give anything up for social justice, because I can always point at the straight white man and say, ‘Well at least I’m not him’, so I can just do whatever I want and I’m making the world a better place because I’m making it more diverse?”
Directed by State Theatre Company’s Resident Director Nescha Jelk, the production features actors from South Australia and Queensland including Chris Pitman, Roger Newcombe, Hugh Parker, Lucas Stibbard, and Merlynn Tong.
The music is composed by Kim ‘Busty Beatz’ Bowers, La Boite Artist-in-Resident and musical director of Black Honey Company who brought Hot Brown Honey to festival audiences across Australia (Adelaide Fringe, Woodford Folk Festival, Brisbane Festival and Darwin Festival).
The production marks La Boite Theatre Company’s first ever collaboration with State Theatre Company of SA, opening in Adelaide (1-23 July) before transferring to the Roundhouse for a Brisbane season.
La Boite at the Roundhouse Theatre. Musk Avenue, Kelvin Grove from 27 July - 13 August. Bookings 07 3007 8600 or laboite.com.au
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