SYNOPSIS
On Jeannie’s fortieth birthday, she has much to be proud of and more to look forward to. Having built a successful career, she and husband Mark are finally ready to start the family they have been planning for years. After a few false starts, the baby they have dreamed of will soon be a reality… or will it?
What is simple for some proves much harder for others. Their unexpected journey forces them to question things they have held onto for many years, drawing in friends and family, who all have views of their own…
Water Child, a contemporary Australian play by award winning playwright Emma Wood, chronicles the struggles of one couple’s deepest desire to be parents.
KHAIRUL KAMSANI
DIRECTOR'S NOTE
Personally, Water Child has been a slew of many interesting firsts in an attempt to assume normalcy; by directing a theatre piece through an online medium.
There will be much to garner in evaluating the experiences of theatre making and audienceship at this stage of global quarantine and the ensuing steps if we ever assume a new normal of live performance.
I’ve noticed how in the process for this work, the times in which the employment of directing and cinematography came into play and when the actors’ own practical discourse between ‘screen acting’ and ‘stage acting’ subconsciously were in contention.
How then do you as an audience, consume this placeholder of live theatre, performed live, via a digital medium that also becomes available as a recorded film that is not a film? I have embraced the unprecedentedness of the times by exploring forms, styles and themes within my practice that would seem as a departure of my usual inter-medial and abstract work; returning to the complexity of realistic people, circumstances and conflicts that are explored in this play.
Water Child dives deep into personal confrontations in encountering states of crisis and unfamiliarity; how do we overcome trauma, communicate our fears and connect to a support system to move forward as a community? I believe that all of us have felt some sense of loss in recent times and I do hope that we can find our own Water Child after this experience.
PREMIERE NIGHT REVIEWS
"Congratulations everyone - fantastic production and a real achievement to show the success of this new medium for performers, creatives, and audiences!"
— Alex Wadham
"This was absolutely amazing! It was the first zoom play I've seen and I am really thankful for the format given my highly emotional reaction to it (ie: loud sobbing throughout...). It was so insightful from different aspects of such a challenging experience - brilliant writing and brilliant conveying of those emotions. Well done and thank you!"
— Nicole Marshal
"Bravissimo all, for a tremendous, engrossing and intently emotional performance!"
— Steve Dixon
"Well done everyone. Tough subject matter presented with due respect & authenticity. A privilege to view."
— Judy Kiem
"Really good example of how Theatre can still be produced from a distance. This is really impressive. excellent inspiration for my students as well"
— Andrew Stevenson