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Independent theatre gets Festival boost

If there is one thing the Sydney Fringe Festival will be remembered for, it will be the incredible opportunities it has given to new, exciting and at times risky theatre.

Amongst such productions is Zetland, the world premiere of a 50 minute play by Jasper Marlow at the Sidetrack Theatre in Marrickville from mid-September.

It tells the story of two brothers, Josh and Ross, and their house mate Kez who are trying to live together amid a swamp of poverty, avoidance and failed dreams.

It's a dark comedy that smacks of truth, an intimate experience of how men communicate, how they avoid conflict and how they deal with failure.

Press notes reveal: "Ross is leaving for the army tomorrow. Josh is making a clean break with a career in a call centre, trying to be responsible and hold the house together. Kez builds his sculptures around them trying to fill the silence created when no one talks about what is really going on, trying to bridge the gap and
lighten the mood before it all falls apart."

Writer Jasper Marlow, whose other works are also featured in Stories From The 428 as part of the Sydney Fringe, brings Zetland to the Sidetrack Theatre from beginnings in ATYP's 'Fresh Ink' programme for young writers, after being selected to undergo a development as part of the Queen Street Studio's 'Off the Shelf' programme.

An original piece of Australian theatre from an emerging young playwright, it highlights the talents of three fine young actors: Felix Jozeps, Brendan Maclean and Alex
Bryant-Smith under the direction of Andrew Johnston coupled with the exceptional design talents of Kate Shanahan.

With an overwhelming sense of life in a Sydney share house it oozes the culture that inhabits the inner west and eastern suburbs. The negotiations we make versus family over friends, what happens when we are forced to grow up, how we accept responsibility, how we live with and treat one another, how we choose to spend and express our youth,

Zetland aims to illuminates those who drink wine (from a cask) and what they do when the party's over.

The Sydney Fringe is a cultural smackdown profiling the diversity of new art and its artists; it is a look underneath to the urban and the unconventional. It ranges from edgy, alternative theatre to major concerts and visual arts openings and brief encounters in surprising places; from free one-off events to all night parties, and performances of all scales.

For more details on the Sydney Fringe and to book shows, visit www.thesydneyfringe.com.au.

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