Watch as the brand new plays written by local playwrights in GASWORKS SCRIPT LAB 2024 are brought to life on stage!

In 2024, in partnership with Gasworks Arts Park, Melbourne Writers’ Theatre again presented the exciting new playwriting program Gasworks Script Lab. Under the guidance of Michael Olsen, writers in the Emerging stream learned how to write a short play from scratch. In the Experienced stream, facilitator Laura Lethlean supported her writers to further strengthen their existing plays. Between July and September, the writers from both streams attended immersive Saturday afternoon workshops in the Art & Craft Studio at Gasworks Arts Park. They brainstormed their scripts with their peers, workshopped them with actors, and then wrote a final draft in preparation for sharing them with the theatre-loving public.

On Tuesday 22^nd October, we will present the new short plays produced by our Emerging playwrights in Showcase Night 1. On Wednesday 23^rd October, we’ll be back to present excerpts from the new full-length plays developed by our Experienced playwrights in Showcase Night 2. Are you a new work enthusiast? Keen to support local theatre? Or perhaps an aspiring playwright with an idea that You would love to turn into a play? Choose the showcase of your choice, or enjoy both for less with the Double Showcase deal.

These plays are original, bold and surprising, They explore an endless array of themes – love and dating, politics and power, entertainment and the environment, feuds and friendships – guaranteeing a memorable evening of brand-new theatre performed by talented local actors. The performances will be led by accomplished directors Natasha Broadstock (Showcase Night 1) and Karyn Lee Greig (Showcase Night 2). The following new scripts will be presented:

SHOWCASE NIGHT 1  (New short plays)
Second Chance by Hayden Dun
Why Is He leaving? by  Ryan Klein
Rosina  by Lella Carriddi OAM
Sisters on Fire by  Toni San Diego
Sheena Gets a Haircut by  Jasmeet Sahi
Visiting Hours by  Caroline Schelle
The Shrine by  Anastasia Warmuth
Don’t Trust Charlie by Alex Lance

SHOWCASE NIGHT 2  (New full-length plays – excerpts)
The Thing About Reg by Gary Helmore
The Memory Mirror by Georgina Luck
Svengali by Oscar Bray
Lost/Locked In by Sabina Gerardi
Honeybear Tamzen by Hayes
Legs by Tuia Suter

To find out more about Gasworks Script Lab, click here.