CHASE / Program (2022)

16 – 20 MAR

Malthouse acknowledges the Land and Songlines of the Boon Wurrung and Wurundjeri peoples of the Kulin Nation.

malthousetheatre.com.au #malthousetheatre #chase

Meet Chase. She’s living her best life.

Compelling, repelling, and funny, Chase sifts through the weeds of contemporary culture with a handy cam and her YouTube subscribers for company.

If only Chase understood half of what she helps others discover.

Carly Sheppard has been developing and performing the character of Chase for nearly a decade. A macro metaphor of our colonial shame, Chase is equally offensive to theatregoers from every walk of life. But therein lies her power. Chase is a mirror back to Australia.

Meet Chase. You just might see yourself.

Chase Cast & Creative

CARLY SHEPPARD Concept & Performer

KAMARRA BELL-WYKES Director

SMALLSOUND Set Designer, Sound & Composition Designer

RICHIE BROWNLEE Sound & Composition Designer

KATIE SFETKIDIS Lighting Designer

DEVIKA BILIMORIA Videographer

ALEX MANSELL Video Editor

COINTHA WALKEDEN Stage Manager

Note from the Director I first met Chase in a mate’s shed in Greensy, once we got over our mutual hatred, we really hit it off and we’ve been trying to get in a room alone together ever since, it finally happened and together we conceived a show in the flames of the dying world, thrust forth in the embers of its afterglow… or so the story goes.

I want to thank my tidda, friend, and collaborator, the incredible Carly Sheppard, for letting me hitch my cart to her horse and revel in her brilliance, smallsound for his unconditional everything, the Mookies for growing me up, my mum and dad of course, and Malthouse and the CHASE creative team for trusting our type of crazy.

CHASE is the last frontier of the old world, the itch you can’t scratch, the crevice you can’t help poking. Seriously. Not that seriously.

KAMARRA BELL-WYKES Director

ADaylightConnectionTM©ClapChaseyTM©LikeAndSubscribeTM©GoAskAnnieTM©GoTellCointhaTM© BetterInviteRachaelTM©SheWon’tComeTM©WithGoodReason TM©LookWhatYouMadeMeDo TM© AtLeastWeTried TM©That’sSoMeta TM©FuckenGenius TM©Obviously TM©NotThatObviously TM© IWishISawIt TM©NightTimeTravesty TM©YouAreTheCockroach TM©ForTheMasses TM© ThisMayBeTheLastShowWeEverMake TM©LivingTheDreamTM©EndOfDazeProductionTM©ProductionTM© WhatEvenIsAProduction?TM©Productions TM©2020–2022 TM© No dolls or crows were harmed in the making of this production.

Note from the Performer Chase is a character I have used in my practice for 10 years and she’s seen a few different intersections of performance contexts.

In this work, Chase is processing and filtering and interpreting multitudes of mythologies, identities, and theories which have given humans meaning for their conscious existence. The gunk and detritus that make up a capitalist life and death is being forced through Chase’s prism with dwindling context and no earthly future.

It is beyond wild and brilliant and HUGE to share this character with my sissy Kamarra Bell-Wykes and to make a work with her which is a tapestry of both of our naughty little spirits, our musings, and our conversations about meaning and being and watching the world.

It’s such a dream to work with both Kamarra and smallsound, two collaborators with whom I feel very lucky to be sharing the build of this work, and all the wonderful crew at Malthouse making it happen.

Big thanks to Jessie Lloyd, Jacob Boehme, ILBIJERRI Theatre Company, BlakDance, Arts House, Next Wave Festival, Josh Twee, Daniel Nixon, Kamarra Bell-Wykes, Malthouse, and my family for the support, opportunities, and creative input in the inception and development of Chase and her various iterations over the years.

INFLUENZA Yeah so like Kamarra and the hole team were really excited to work with me and I think like I far exceeded their expectations!! I did have to break other contracts for this but I just wanna say on the record that I did it for charity. Your welcome!

SALLY Procreation is dead.

CHASE Ohhh fanks for having me n that im like so humbled everyday that I get to tell my story and like, reach into peoples hearts and give them skills to thrive that they might never have had if it wasn’t for me. Like and Subscribe. ‘Sometimes the most peaceful thing you can do is just knock a cunt out.’ — Me CARLY SHEPPARD Concept & Performer

Malthouse Staff & Board BOARD FIONA McGAUCHIE (CHAIR) MICHAEL KANTOR (DEPUTY CHAIR) JADA ALBERTS DEBORAH CHEETHAM AO DEBBIE DADON AM ANDREW MYER AM SUE PRESTNEY PAMELA RABE NICK SCHLIEPER MARY VALLENTINE AO ALAN WONG ARIA WONG (OBSERVER) EXECUTIVE MATTHEW LUTTON SARAH NEAL ARTISTIC & PROGRAMMING MARK PRITCHARD BRIDGET BALODIS RA CHAPMAN KAMARRA BELL-WYKES MARLINE ZAIBAK LAURA HALE ANNIE BOURKE LINDA CATALANO FINANCE & ADMINISTRATION NESS HARWOOD LIZ WHITE CESSALEE STOVALL ALLIE STAPLETON CONNIE STELLA MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS DAVEY SIMMONS JACQUI BATHMAN JULIA ANTIQUE PUBLICITY TS PUBLICITY GRAPHIC DESIGN HOURS AFTER CONTENT PRODUCER TAMARAH SCOTT DEVELOPMENT ALEX BELLEMORE PATRICK CRUMMY

TICKETING & BOX OFFICE PRUE SUTHERLAND FIONA WISEMAN BOX OFFICE STAFF PAUL BUCKLEY EMILY BURKE BRONYA DOYLE MELLITA ILICH MIN KINGHAM EMMA WHITBY LIZ WHITE PRODUCTION DAVID MILLER BAIRD McKENNA DEXTER VARLEY TIA CLARK ROB BALLINGALL IVAN SMITH BRENDAN JELLIE DELIA SPICER GOFFREDO MAMELI ELIZABETH WHITTON LENNON FOWLER PATRICK JONES VENUE JOHN BYRNE EMMA CORBETT STEVE HEARNE FRONT OF HOUSE STAFF BRIANNAH BORG DEZI BOYLE MITCHELL BROTZ LOUISA CARPINTERI DANIELLE GODER ZOE HADLER CATHERINE HAMILTON RYAN JONES SOPHIE McCRAE HAYLEY NEWMAN LEAH OLIVERIA JULIE O’REILLY KATIE ROWE LUCY SEALE EMMA SHAW FLYNN SMEATON BARNEY SPICER RILEY STOW KENNY WAITE OLIVE WEEKS HAYLEY WOLTERS

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Presented by Malthouse Theatre, in association with HotHouse Theatre.

This script was commissioned by Malthouse Theatre through the support of the Malcolm Robertson Foundation.

© Malthouse Theatre, the artists, designers, photographers, collaborators and contributors. All rights reserved, 2022.

Campaign Photography / Gregory Lorenzutti Printed on 100% recycled paper.