Australian Theatre for Young People (ATYP) launch their 2014 Selects season (previously known as Under the Wharf) with the Australian premiere of Diana Son’s critically acclaimed play Stop Kiss.
New to New York City, Sara meets Callie through a friend, but their relationship moves quickly and unexpectedly away from friendship. Caught by surprise, the conservative Callie struggles to comprehend the growing attraction, and the two circle each other warily, willing the other to make the first move.
When the long awaited moment comes and they kiss for the first time on the streets of New York’s West Village, it prompts a devastating act of violence. With Sara hospitalised and comatose, this apparent ‘gay-bashing’ is thrown under the full limelight of the media, which in turn places the women’s fledgling relationship under scrutiny from their puzzled friends and family.
An official 2014 Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras event, Stop Kiss will be directed by Sydney Theatre Award winning director Anthony Skuse (On the Shore of the Wide World, Punk Rock), with the cast will be led by Olivia Stambouliah (Packed to the Rafters, Frankenstein) and Gabrielle Scawthorn (The Killing Field, Deadly Women) as the two women at a crossroads.
Stop Kiss will also feature WAAPA graduate Aaron Tsindos, who recently won Best Actor (shared with co-star and director Mathew Hardie) for his role in the controversial Tropfest winning short film Bamboozled. Ben McIvor returns to the Sydney stage after his work in The Great Gatsby and the national tour of Warhorse; rounding out the cast will be Robert Jago (Macbeth, All Saints); Suzanne Pereira (who also serves as Associate Director) and recent ACA graduate Kate Fraser (Starlight Stories).
Anthony Skuse, fresh off the back of a sell out season of On the Shore of the Wide World at Griffin in January, is excited to bring Stop Kiss to a Sydney audience. “What a pleasure to be able to bring together this fantastic group of young artists who are all so passionate about this play. The old ‘girl-meets-girl’ story has been infused with the pace and humour of HBO’s Girls, and the result is electric.”
Stop Kiss premiered at New York’s Public Theater in 1998 to much critical acclaim. Starring Sandra Oh (Grey’s Anatomy) and Jessica Hecht (Friends, Breaking Bad), the production garnered rave reviews and had its season extended three times due to popular demand. Stop Kiss won the GLAAD Media Award for Best New York Production and Diana Son, the Berilla Kerr Award for playwrighting.
The playwright, Diana Son went on to write several more successfully produced plays, as well as television, becoming a writer/producer for the series Blue Bloods, Southland, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, and The West Wing.
Director: Anthony Skuse Cast: Olivia Stambouliah, Gabrielle Scawthorn, Aaron Tsindos, Ben McIvor, Suzanne Pereira, Robert Jago, and Kate Fraser Associate Director: Suzanne Pereira Production Designer: Gez Xavier Mansfield Lighting Designer: Sara Swersky Design Assistant: Miriam Baxter
Stop Kiss
ATYP Studio 1 – The Wharf, Pier 4/5 Hickson Road, Walsh Bay (Sydney)
Season: 5 – 22 March 2014
Bookings: (02) 9270 2400 or online at: www.atyp.com.au
For more information, visit: www.atyp.com.au for details.