An independent Perth theatre company is taking an axe to gender inequality with their latest production.
LIZZIE hits the Perth stage at Don Russel Performing Arts Centre this week.
WA’s premier of the rock-opera, staged by Milkyway Productions, tells the story of the real-life Lizzie Borden. In 1893 she famously faced trial for the axe murder of her father and stepmother, before being acquitted.
The cast of four is led by non-binary performer Lukas Perez, drawing a line between their personal identity and the character to tell the infamous story.
“It’s hard to put yourself in an axe murder’s shoes. I think that Lizzie was an incredibly misunderstood woman,” they say.
“I still very much present as feminine, it’s obviously always the female roles I go for. Sometimes it can be a bit dysphoric.”
Director Kieran Ridgeway says he’s emphasising the feminine themes of the story by enlisting an all-female band to play alongside the cast.
“[My co-director] Luke and I said at the start, we’ll try and keep our names back a little bit. We don’t want to put our names front and forward. That’s not the focus of this show,”
Kieran Ridgeway
Milkyway is seeking to create space for more diverse performances, and Lukas Perez says the theatre community needs to take further steps towards inclusion.
“There’s a real focus in community theatre [on] gender-blind casting. I don’t know how accurate that is,” they say.
“Usually when award seasons roll around… directors will get a message… saying “Where should we put Lukas.”.”
Curtin University’s theatre arts associate professor Leah Mercer says the future of theatre will depend greatly on which governments are in power.
“It’s almost cyclical. With a conservative government, you’re going to see it return to traditional opera and ballet,” she says.
LIZZIE is at at Don Russell Performing Arts Centre from March 14-22.
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