Tony Barea, Peter Scrine and Monica Mist star in a satire about performance art and the politics of Hollywood. Photo: Matthew Weissel, Mush Media.
Wollongong Workshop Theatre will launch an ambitious performance for its first show of the 2025 season and present a contemporary take on Hollywood politics with Ulster American.
In this ”pitch-black comedy” from Irish playwright David Ireland, three people – an Oscar-winning actor, an ambitious director and a talented playwright – meet to begin rehearsals for a new play.
This play-within-the-play is a potential hit that could transform their careers.
But as the night progresses, it becomes clear that everyone is not on the same page and events threaten to spiral out of control.
Power dynamics, cultural identity and the perils of being a woman in the entertainment industry; nothing is off limits in this smart, dark and funny satire.
The small cast exploring big ideas is talented trio Monica Mist, Tony Barea and Peter Scrine, under director Jordon Mahar.
All three actors add a wealth of experience and talent to the stage and are delighted to be bringing this contemporary story to life.
Barea plays Jay, a big-time actor with an ego to match. He said Ulster American was not for the faint-hearted, but would reward the courageous viewer.
“It is a rollercoaster … rollercoasters can be scary, as well as fun,” he said.
Scrine plays Leigh, an idealistic and intelligent theatre director whose idealism often clashes with the practicalities of the professional theatre industry.
In her first production with Wollongong Workshop Theatre since recently returning from New York, Mist plays Ruth Davenport, a talented and determined Irish playwright.
“Ruth has a very strong moral compass about what is right and wrong, even though that’s very complicated for her,” Mist said.
“In the context of the play where men are trying to quieten a woman’s voice, she really hit hard against that and won’t be quietened.”
Ulster American opens at the Wollongong Workshop Theatre on 21 February and plays until 8 March.
Performances will run from 7:30 pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and 2 pm on Saturdays and Sundays, at 190 Gipps Road, Gwynneville (behind the Senior Citizens Centre).
Tickets are $30 per person, or $25 for concession cardholders.
To book, click here.
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