Midsumma Festival is a Melbourne fixture. Running from January into February, it’s a celebration of everything queer. The program features arts of all kinds, and many of the offerings do tours of the regions as part of the increasingly visible, burgeoning Pride Festivals.
My transfem thespian daughter gravitates towards the queer community in all aspects of her life, so it’s no wonder that her latest play is also within this vibrant space. “Thrive” is a verbatim play: the director interviewed people from the queer community, transcribed the interviews, chopped up the print-outs and formed a conversational script out of them. The result is powerful theatre, in which people of different generations reveal their lived experiences of being LGBTI: the brutality and hardships, the kindness and generosity, and all the bits in between. It’s a remarkable piece.
“Thrive” had a November run in Castlemaine, central Victoria, and is billed for Midsumma from 24-28 January. If you’re Melbourne-based or would like a trip, put this one on your calendar! Whether you identify as queer or not, I defy you not to be moved by this reflective piece, which (I predict) will stay with you long after you leave the theatre.
Annabel Harz: Author and Artist 