Trophy Boys
- About the Work
- Touring & Tech
- Marketing & Engagement
A queer black-comedy about power, privilege, and high school debating.
Synopsis
It is the biggest night of Melbourne’s academic calendar, the Grand Finale of the Year 12 Inter-school Debating
Tournament, and the all-boys team from the elite St Imperium college are ready to totally annihilate their sister school – until…
Trophy Boys is a queer black comedy and drag extravaganza about power, privilege and high school debating.
The Maybe Pile are excited to present the debut play written by actor Emmanuelle Mattana (ABC’s Mustangs FC) and directed by Marni Mount (VCA Masters of Directing.) It was a finalist at the Queer Playwriting Awards and enjoyed a limited season at Melbourne/Naarm’s iconic La Mama Courthouse Theatre in December 2022 – selling out before they opened. In early 2023, the boys returned to another iconic Melbourne independent theatre: fortyfivedownstairs presenting as part of Midsumma Festival. Similarly, the show sold out within its first week and enjoyed rave reviews.
Helmed by a diverse and vibrant team of young queer creatives, Trophy Boys uses drag, satire and camp to interrogate the well-documented toxic masculinity, misogyny and homophobia of our elite private boys schools, and their prevalence in the highest offices of power in the country. They’re joined by a glorious cast of Gaby Seow (Young Rock, Celebration Nation, Aunty Donna\’s Coffee Cafe), Leigh Lule (Turn up the Volume, CEEBS), and Fran Sweeney-Nash (Seventeen – Belvoir)
Short Reviews
The Age
Theatre Thoughts
ATYP
Video
Technical Information
Lighting
We have 8 fluorescent lights in enclosures that we hang from the lighting rig over the main action and use hot power with a dedicated individual switch power board. (or bypassing the dimmers in the grid.) We will utilise the theatre’s general wash in conjunction with the down lights, which shifts from warm to cool over the hour. To achieve a ‘party state’ we will require moving washes and LED colour par cans.
Audio
Venue’s stereo PA – into a mixing desk with left and right stereo split into 2 channels. from 3.5mm laptop running QLab.
We also use a single Bluetooth speaker taped underneath a desk that is run from the Qlab also.
Staging
We will require a space that can be set up like a class room. We have done this traditionally as well as in traverse and are flexible to suit our space but at minimum would require approximately 6x8m
We will require a wall to hang photos of prominent women in frames. We have 4-6 school desks (1200x600mm) (depending on space) and 4-6 chairs. If appropriate we will also lay down non-stick carpet tiles on the floor. A whiteboard on wheels completes the set design.
Crew Notes
Most of our set up can fit in a single diesel van depending on the area required to be covered by carpet tiles and whether lights need to be hired. Crew to travel by car.
Transport Notes
Depending on whether we might be able to borrow desks/chairs from a local school/university and forgo carpet tiles, we may be able to travel by plane, otherwise we have fit everything in a single diesel van successfully.
This would also require hiring lights locally.
Audience & Marketing Notes
This show has strong appeal to young audiences 16-25 who are either at high school, or have recently left.
The trauma of high school stays with us for a long time though, so those aged millennials also came in drones!
Our audiences thus far have tended to skew more towards women and non-binary folx, although we would like to get the show in front of school aged males as possible considering the strong social take-aways.
Selling Points
- A comedy about private school boys played by female/non-binary actors
- 5 Stars in The Age
- Sold out both seasons (with huge demand for future shows)
Content Warning
Details
Genre
Audience
Venue Format
We are flexible - we just need to be able to fit 4-6 desks and a whiteboard.
Duration
65 Minutes
Available Until (from - to)
30/09/2023
Budget & Fees
What are these? Find out more.In Development - work which will be produced and premiered in time for touring during 2022/2023. Please contact the Producer directly for Budgets and Fees.
Remount: $33,250
Weekly Sell Off: $13,750
Per Performance: $7000
