For this show, we’re introducing a flexible pricing model that puts you in control. When booking your ticket, you’ll have the option to choose from three price points – each giving you the same great experience. Whether you want to pay a little less, a little more, or somewhere in between, the choice is yours. It’s our way of making theatre more accessible while inviting you to support it in a way that suits you. We just ask that when you’re choosing your price, you keep in mind the quality of the production and the work that’s gone into making it happen. If you’re able to pay a bit more, it helps us keep programming great theatre for everyone.
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The Events Centre, Caloundra presents Jacinta Yelland
Fresh off a hit run at Theatre Works (Melbourne) and PhysFestNYC (New York City), KOAL is a one-woman climate-catastrophe-clown-show for the end of the world. As wildfires tear through Australia, a baby koala, a coal miner and an Indigenous girl desperately strive to hold onto their homes before all burns and turns to ash.
KOAL is an original interactive solo-show, performed by Jacinta Yelland (RealTV, Elbow Room, Zen Zen Zo Physical Theatre, Pig Iron Theatre Company, David Gordon) and directed by Trey Lyford (rainpan 43, The Civilians), that immerses the audience in the middle of the 2019 Australian bushfires. The show follows two eyewitnesses to this climate catastrophe; Koal, a baby koala recovering at a wildlife sanctuary after being saved from a nearby wildfire, and Stevo, a career coal miner trapped in a collapsed mine hundreds of metres underground. Woven throughout is the story of Minah, an Indigenous girl who was removed from her home and interned by her government during WWII. Using documentary theatre, clown, and audience interaction, KOAL takes the audience from laughter to tears as it explores what is lost when your home is erased.
“The rave reviews did not exaggerate. It was a masterclass in physical theatre. The audience was on their feet before it finished.” – Shana Kennedy, Director – Circadium
“I haven’t been able to put into words just how moving this show is. I cried, and I laughed, and it made me want to be a better human being.” – Audience Member
Read stories about the process of creating KOAL: Amplifying the Voices of the Natural World Through Theatre
CREATIVE TEAM
DIRECTOR – Trey Lyford
CO-CREATORS – Jacinta Yelland & Trey Lyford
ORIGINAL MUSIC COMPOSER – Ethan Mentzer
SOUND DESIGNER – Ethan Mentzer
ADDITIONAL SOUND DESIGN – Trey Lyford
LIGHTING DESIGNER – Trey Lyford
SET DESIGNER – Payton Smith
ADDITIONAL SET DESIGN – Jacinta Yelland
MASKS – Barbaric Yawp Workshop
PERCUSSION – Tobias Smith
STAGE MANAGER – Emmie Parker
COSTUME CONSULTANT – Grace Lillian Lee
CAST – Jacinta Yelland
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EDUCATION BOOKINGS
CLICK HERE to place a reservation via our Education Bookings portal.
To reserve your booking and secure the special education groups price you can reserve online via the education bookings link, contact the Box Office on (07) 5491 4240 or fill-out the education bookings form
Want to know more about the reservation process? Visit our Education Bookings page
Acknowledgements
We acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land across Australia and recognise their enduring connection to land, waters, skies, and community. We pay our respects to Elders past and present and extend that respect to all First Nations peoples today. Sovereignty was never ceded. Always was, always will be, Aboriginal land.
We are deeply grateful to the many generous donors whose support made the development and productions of KOAL possible. While we are unable to name each of you individually, please know that your belief in this work and your contributions were invaluable. Your encouragement helped bring this story to life, and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
Special thanks to Suli Holum and The Work, gimmick, The Puffin Foundation Ltd., Fresh Ground Pepper NYC, City of Philadelphia, Philadelphia Asian Performing Artists, and Rasma and Stephen Yelland for supporting this work from its inception.
This play is dedicated to Marcella, Aiden, Maddox, Ruya, Sonny, Cleo and all that exists in the more-than-human world.
