It's hard to beat a good story. Login or signup to continue reading Ang Collins has always held Blueberry Play close to her. She wrote the play eight years ago when she was 22, and while is it a comedy and fictional, elements of it were openly drawn from her own youth.
Now, for the first time, the play has a run in Newcastle, Collins' home town, with four shows from August 14 through August 17 at the Civic Playhouse. It is the first of the four works commissioned by the City of Newcastle to be presented as part of the Upstage at the Playhouse program for 2024. The city chose four productions to invest in with space, marketing and technical help to encourage local creatives in the arts.
"It's from a very special, raw time in my life, and it keeps resonating with people," Collins says of B lueberry Play . "I've kind of kept it close for a long time. It's always a joy to bring it back.
" Blueberry Play was shortlisted for the prestigious Griffin Award in 2017, and has been produced twice. Promotional material for the play describes it thusly: "Being 17 is awkward. Having to take care of your sick dad when you're 17 is another story.
.. Blueberry Play is a vivid and heart-bursting monologue that explores the high highs and the low lows of being a teenage girl in a small town.
.. this is an Aussie coming-of-age story with a refreshing twist.
" Collins drew inspiration from her own experience and that of a very close friend. While the fictional play is not set in Newcastle, Collins say.