Soul of Possum

Something’s coming. Stick together to survive.

It’s 1853 on the Murray River. As the wildlife flees through the bush from an unseen threat, three Wamba Wamba men must survive a cat-and-mouse chase across country to warn their people of the oncoming colonialists. Led by a volatile captain, the colonialists have their own internal power struggles to contend with.

One of 14 newly commissioned works by the 2021 YIRRAMBOI Festival, in Soul of Possum emerging playwright Brodie Murray (Wamba Wamba) draws on stories handed down from his grandfather and father to tell a historical thriller that explores the contrasting relationships settlers and Blak peoples have with Country, ecology, leadership and spirituality.

YIRRAMBOI Festival
Meat Market Stables
12 to 15 May 2021

Castlemaine State Festival
Castlemaine Botanical Gardens Outdoor Stage
Live Reading
25, 27, 28, 29 March 2021

Commissioned by YIRRAMBOI Festival.

Presented by YIRRAMBOI Festival in association with the Castlemaine State Festival.

Soul of Possum has received funding from the Castlemaine State Festival, Sydney Myer Fund and the City of Melbourne.

REVIEWS

“Other theatre makers could learn from this stripped back but powerful production …  The play is a huge achievement for Brodie Murray, Declan Furber Gillick, their collaborators and the YIRRAMBOI and Castlemaine Festivals. ” 

Stage Whispers
CREDITS
Photo by Cameron Grant

WRITER
Brodie Murray

DRAMATURG
Declan Furber Gillick

DIRECTOR
Beng Oh

PRODUCER
Erica McCalman

SOUND DESIGN
Ben Keene

LIGHTING DESIGN AND STAGE MANAGEMENT
Shane Grant

MOVEMENT DIRECTOR
Balaneba

INSTRUMENTALISTS
Ron Murray and Sarah James

PHOTOGRAPHY
Cameron Grant

CAST
Balaneba (Yirramboi Festival)
Jyden Brailey
Kevin Dee
Tahlee Fereday (Voice of Possum)
Luke Mason
Brodie Murray
Gabriel Partington
Corey Saylor-Brunskill (Castlemaine Festival)
Leigh Scully