Asking for Trouble is an exciting new theatre company formed by Luke O’Connor, Christy Flaws and Ailsa Wild – circus performers and teachers and some of the names behind last year’s Pirated! Bubblewrap and Boxes is their first show and is being staged at La Mama and Gasworks for this year’s comedy festival.
This gorgeous kids’ show is set in the lost mail room, a simple but ingenious set of cardboard boxes sets the scene. O’Connor plays the highly-strung mail room dweller, intent on keeping his boxes in order. Flaws plays the free-spirited new arrival whose sense of adventure leaves O’Connor gasping for breath. When a strange parcel arrives the duo have to decide if and how to deal with it.
This is one of the most beautiful pieces of family theatre I have seen. Everything from the creative set, the beautiful music and the great performances works perfectly. The acrobatics employed are impressive and O’Connor’s and Flaw’s experience teaching children is evident in the relaxed way they pick up on the audience’s energy and work with it to make the show even better.
I particularly loved the way the performers communicate with each other using the mail room props. O’Connor reads from lost postcards and letters, using other people’s words to say what he feels. Flaws draws from a bag of exotic postcards to transport them to exciting locations. They imagine they are climbing the Eiffel Tower, on safari in Africa and scuba diving in Tonga – but will they ever be brave enough to go on real adventures?
This is a fun and funny show from some very, very talented people. And if my review isn’t enough to get you to this show then the ticket prices should do it. At La Mama kids’ tickets are only $6, and at Gasworks $10, which is the best value kids show in the program. I thought this show was brilliant but more importantly my kids did too. Don’t take my word for it, here’s what they say:
Jasper (5): I didn’t like this show – I LOVED IT! I liked how they imagined about the pictures and when Luke was breathing funny.
Iris (5): I really liked everything but mostly the parts when they did those tricks. They were cool. They were scared of just a person and a box. That’s funny.
Violet (8): This show was funny and absolutely fantastic because they were scared of a present. They put caution tape around me and Jasper, which made us laugh. Christy kept doing the wrong thing and it made Luke nervous. I also liked how they used other people’s mail to talk to each other. And I won the raffle at the end.
For more info and booking details go to Bubblewrap and Boxes by Asking for Trouble