The Pavilion Performing Arts Centre Sutherland and Country Arts SA present State Theatre Company South Australia’s multi-award-winning play Euphoria for two special performances on Thursday 11th and Friday 12th of May.
This new play by award-winning South Australian playwright Emily Steel (19 Weeks) is a rich and heart-warming story, bringing regional voices to the fore and an entire town to life with authenticity and unmistakable wit.
A country town, a festival, a local tragedy and a town that doesn’t talk. This tale of good days, bad days and everything in between catapults us right into the heart of a little town where everyone knows everyone and where Ethan is hit by his past as Meg struggles with the present. As a local festival unfolds, Meg and Ethan’s worlds collide, and the community comes together for an event they’ll never forget.
Four years in the making, playwright Emily Steel traveled widely across regional South Australia to research mental health issues within small, isolated communities. Informed by real conversations between Steel and residents, Euphoria is a sharply observed play about the human habit of distracting ourselves from our most vulnerable parts.
Euphoria is brought to life by Ashton Malcom (State Theatre Company South Australia’s Othello) and James Smith (Girl From The North Country). A 15-minute post-show Q&A led by a mental health practitioner will be a catalyst for important discussions that continue beyond the performance.
Rachel Healy, Pavilion Performing Arts Centre Interim Director said, “Not only does Emily Steel’s Euphoria tap the ‘post’ COVID zeitgeist and our growing awareness of the corrosive impact of poor mental health in families and communities, she does it with wit, insight and spirit. This is riveting, must-see theatre for everyone from a brilliant Australian playwright.”
The Pavilion Performing Arts Centre Sutherland is the premier performing arts centre in the southern Sydney metropolitan area, strengthening local and regional cultural values, and connecting its community to entertainment and the arts. Euphoria is a part of its inaugural program of world-class productions presented at the new arts centre this year.