The Crash Test Drama 2015 Season One Finals were a huge success, with eight great plays being watched by an audience of more than 130 people. As always, the quality was fantastic and some wonderful plays have made their way through to Short+Sweet.
Opening the night was "Baggage Claim", the inaugural stage play by Carla DeLuca, which was directed by Adrian Bitel. Rosemary Ghazi starred as Alicia and Ryan Bown played Bob. This play was a hit with the audience.
Second up was Nick Subjak's "Leprechaun", directed by Don Lacey. It starred Liam Phelan as Larry the Leprechaun, Daniel Pollock as James and Antonia Zappia as Ashley.
Third was "Brothers In Arms", written and directed by the multi-talented Warren Glover. Richard Littlehales starred as little brother William, with Leon Joseph as big brother Humphrey. Thanks also to a couple of cameo appearances!
Rounding off the first act was "Winning" by Graham Yates, which Michele Mattiuzzi directed. Best Actor Runner Up Charles Gosgrove starred as Simon, alongside Best Actress Runner Up Rosemary Ghazi (in her second performance for the night) as Rache. "Winning" appropriately enough won the Popular Vote and earned itself a spot in Short+Sweet Sydney 2016, the world's largest short play festival.
Act two opened with "Joanna", written by Colleen Henry and directed by TOAST. It starred Angela Gibson as teacher Jenny, Samantha Lee as inmate Lisa, Shu Torng Hiew as inmate Liz and Hilary Park as the psychotic Joanna.
The sixth play up was "Blind Date", written by Paulene Turner and also directed by TOAST. Performing this piece were Cyrus Henry, June Holmes, Joan Rodd, and Best Actor winner Graham Yates.
Seventh was "Artoo And Threepio Are Lead", written, directed and performed by Seamus McAlary. This Rosencrantz & Guildenstern meets Star Wars homage featured Rodney Todd as Artoo, Madeleine Culp as Leia (and on SFX), and writer Seamus as Threepio.
And rounding up the night was Pheona Mulligan's "The Piece Keeper", which Best Director Felicity Burke directed. Janine Penfold won Best Actress for her powerful performance as a hoarder with a dark past, and the play won the Judge's Choice award for Best Play. We'll be seeing "The Piece Keeper" again in Short+Sweet Sydney 2016.
The Results
Our judge was writer/director Deb Mulhall, a theatre veteran and former Judges' Coordinator at Short+Sweet Sydney. Her picks were:
Best Actor: Graham Yates
Best Actress: Janine Penfold
Best Actor Runner Up: Charles Cosgrove
Best Actress Runner Up: Rosemary Ghazi
Best Director: Felicity Burke
Best Play: "The Piece Keeper”
Popular Vote Winner: "Winning"
Popular Vote Runner Up: "The Piece Keeper"
Playwright's Encouragement Award: Nick Subjak for "Leprechaun"
"Winning" and "The Piece Keeper" have both won places in the Top 80 of Short+Sweet Sydney 2016.
Congratulations to everyone who was involved in the Finals and a huge thank you as always to New Theatre for hosting the event and Georgie Edwards for co-running and hosting.
Season Two dates will be announced soon.