Tim Winton's Shrine at Melville Theatre

Tim Winton's Shrine at Melville Theatre

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Posted 2019-01-16 by grooverfollow

Fri 15 Feb 2019 - Sat 02 Mar 2019



A deeply moving and sometimes confronting play from Tim Winton comes to Melville Theatre this February. Directed by Kayti Murphy, Shrine is set on WA's south coast and explores the themes of love, grief and the way those who have passed endure through the memories of the living.

The play tells of a couple struggling to recover from the loss of their son Jack – a year later, all they have left is a scar on a tree next to a roadside shrine and an abundance of unanswered questions. But then a young woman named June turns up on the doorstep with a story about their son's final hours.

"Shrine is not only about the irrevocable way the grief of a loved one changes us but also the ways in which those who have passed can reveal new things about themselves, even in death," Kayti said. "That was the key for me – it would be hard to just put on a play about two people grieving the death of their son."The intrigue of June's story drives the play forward, exploring what really happened in Jack's final hours. She needs to tell her story and Jack's father needs to hear it."

The main challenge, according to Kayti, is ensuring there is light with the dark. "There is so much love, intrigue and mysticism in this show," she said. "I wanted to make sure this is just as significant as the darker moments of a parent's grief."



After studying theatre and drama at Murdoch University, Kayti appeared in numerous productions and was one of the principal cast in the community TV series Love on the Box. In 2013, she performed in Noel Coward's Hands Across The Sea at Melville Theatre and A Conversation at the Old Mill Theatre, winner of the 2013 Milly Award for best play.

Kayti followed up those roles in 2014 with Cosi at Phoenix Theatre and Ninety at Garrick Theatre, along with The Temperamental Artist, Love, Loss and What I Wore, Death and the Maiden and Stop Kiss.



"As soon as I read Shrine, I knew it was something special and wanted to bring it to the stage," she said. "Tim Winton's writing beautifully encapsulates the WA landscape so much that it is an extension of the characters themselves."You can feel, through his writing, the magic and majesty of nature and how it can shape us while showing us how interconnected we all are. Every character has a sense of responsibility about what happened to Jack that night and they are all dealing with it in their own ways."



Jessica Brooke plays June. "I see her as a beautiful flower growing alone among dry, harsh bush that has been neglected and allowed to surround the flower," she said. "If you were to walk past this bush area, you wouldn't see the beautiful flower – but she would be able to see you."She would see how the passersby's gardens are lovely and cared for and how so many flowers are able to be seen and thrive in those gardens. The constant reminder of her invisibility and unimportance becomes June's identity but her hidden beauty and ability to be more than what others see becomes her secret."

The biggest challenge, according to Jessica, are the character's multiple layers. "Her thickest layers protect her from the harsh outside world and the people that exist in it," she said.

"June will let you see whatever side of her she wants you to see – but only on her terms. My challenge is to justly represent June, her truth and all of her complexities."

Jessica said Shrine appealed to her because it showed the importance of loves ones and how to value life. "You are reminded of the impact you can have on others, both big and small and negative and positive," she said. "During my first read of the play, I had moments of laughter, reflective silences and saddened tears. By the last page, I could not believe I could be moved so deeply by such a beautiful story and I felt it needed to be heard, so I wanted to be a part of it."

Tim Winton's Shrine plays at 8pm February 15, 16, 21, 22, 23, 28, March 1 and 2 with a 2pm matinee February 24. Tickets are $20, $15 concession – book on 9330 4565 or at www.meltheco.org.au . Melville Theatre is on the corner of Stock Road and Canning Highway, Palmyra.



#community_theatre
#greater_fremantle
#greater_perth
#melville
#palmyra
#performing_arts
#southern_suburbs
#theatre
#theatres
#february
!date 15/02/2019 -- 02/03/2019
%wnperth
172764 - 2023-06-15 11:08:26

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