2022 Drama Centre Showcase

As a child, Mili loved to put on shows for her family, take advantage of birthday parties where she would perform self-choreographed dances with her best friend, and in her spare time absorb any movie she had access to.

Mili was born in Montenegro, then lived in Italy till she was 5, in Serbia till she was 14, in Sydney till she was 16 and has been living in Adelaide since. As she was exposed to different people, cultures, and languages from a very young age, she always felt the need to understand people and their journey, and therefore she finds great joy in learning and storytelling.

After winning the Drama Academic Award in year 11 in Brighton Secondary School, Mili was motivated to look more into acting, and after finishing high school, she was accepted into Flinders Drama Centre. Whilst at Drama Centre, she has performed a range of roles including Dulcie in the Summer of Aliens and Zoe in Peach Season for her graduate production (dir. Wayne Harrison AM), Agnes/Ensemble in Alice Birch’s Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again. (Dir. Anthony Nicola), Mrs Antrobus in Thornton Wilder’s The Skin of Our Teeth (Dir. Renato Musolino),ensemble in Fassbinder’s  Pre Paradise Sorry Now (Dir. Tom Healey), Young Emily/Mrs Soames in Thornton Wilder’s Our Town (Dir. Genevieve Mooy), Tami Timko (converted from Tim Timko)/Trish/Talk Show Host in Craig Lucas’s Reckless (Dir. James Wardlaw), Sorina (converted from Sorin) in Chekov’s The Seagull (Dir. Connor Reidy), and Lady Macbeth in Shakespeare’s Macbeth in a scene showing (Dir. James Wardlaw). Whilst at Drama Centre, Mili has also performed in various short films.

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Majka/Majka

Majka/Majka is a short piece which explores the relationship of Mili and her mum. It explores cultural and generation differences between the Serbian mum and Serbian-Australian daughter. Mili is interested to find out about her mum beyond what she’s ever known her as - a mother.

Growing up as a competitive dancer, Ella has always possessed a desire to tell stories. Through it wasn’t until her discovery of acting in high school that this passion became fully realised, having never been a stranger to the stage since. 

Ella has performed a variety of roles including ensemble member in Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s Pre-Paradise, Sorry Now (dir. Tom Healey) Emily Webb in Thornton Wilder’s Our Town (dir. Genevieve Mooy), Elizabeth/Nicki/ Isabelle in Keziah Warner’s Control (dir. Connor Reidy), Queen Elizabeth in Shakespeare's Richard III, ensemble member in Alice Birch’s Revolt, She Said. Revolt Again. (dir. Anthony Nicola), Arkadina in Anton Chekhov’s The Seagull (dir. Connor Reidy) and Gladys Antrobus in Thornton Wilder’s The Skin of Our Teeth (dir. Renato Musolino). 

Amongst her stage credits, Ella has acted in a number of student films, as well as directing a film titled Under the Influence for the 48-film festival in 2021. Amongst these roles, Ella has utilised her time at Drama Centre writing short film and theatre scripts, and further developing her singing and dancing skills.

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Communion

Under the guidance of Caleb Lewis, Ella has written a piece entitled Communion, based on the provocation ‘now or never’. In spotlighting a moment of intimacy between two people that is rarely seen on the stage, Communion takes a rather provocative experience between a female and a male, and explicitly dissects the pro’s and con’s of the female character engaging in such an act.  Ella was interested in exploring theatre that challenges preconceived stereotypes and expectations placed on young women on the stage, and in tying together dark comedy, rather graphic and crude images, and some not-so-subtle religious motifs, all of which place this exposing piece centre stage, with nowhere to hide. 

Enchanted by cinema from birth, Rhys was awoken to his love of performance at the age of six after an acting coach, who saw Rhys in a kids club on holiday, tracked his father down in a bar and strongly recommended that he enrol his son into acting lessons.

Ever since, Rhys has been passionate in his pursuit of the profession, simultaneously attending multiple acting schools and earning roles since age eleven in television and radio.  

During his time at Flinders University Drama Centre, Rhys has had the opportunity to perform in a substantial variety of roles, Including as an ensemble member in Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s Pre-Paradise Sorry-Now (Dir. Tom Healey), George Gibbs in Thornton Wilder’s Our Town (Dir. Genevieve Moy), the Protagonist in Neil Labute’s Bash: Iphigenia in Orem (Dir. Connor Reidy). Macbeth in Macbeth (Dir. James Wardlaw) Chunk in Patricia Cornelius’ The Call (Dir. Tom Healey), Trigorin In Benedict Andrews’ The Seagull: After Anton Chekhov (dir. Connor Reidy) and George Antrobus in Thornton Wilder’s The Skin of Our Teeth (dir. Renato Musolino). He has also edited, shot and acted in multiple short films including a 35-minute film at the end of his third year. 

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The Uni made Me

Under the guidance of theatre maker Emma Beech, Rhys Griffin has created a devised piece called “The Uni made Me”. The piece navigates Rhys’s relationship with his grandparents and his ancestors exploring the power of generational love and story-telling. Attempting to give life to a number, it combines history, anecdotal stories, and a conversation after dinner into a work that expands over a century, weaving between the pages of history text books. Rhys’s desire to represent his authentic self rather than a character has manifested in a no-frills, honest and exposing piece about how lucky we all are.

From a young age, Dion discovered his love for acting through the mix of constantly watching films as well as extremely enjoying the sense of play with friends. Throughout a tumultuous journey of different paths after school, Dion’s passion for acting never disappeared, and so he auditioned for Flinders Drama Centre.

Dion has performed in diverse roles throughout his studies. These roles include a large number of characters from Reiner Warner Fassbinder’s Pre-Paradise, Sorry Now (dir. Tom Healey), the loving father Mr Webb in a production of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town (dir. Genevieve Mooy), the gentle and considerate Lloyd in Craig Lucas’ Reckless (dir. James Wardlaw). Dion has also played an old tap-dancing Hollywood star in a monologue from Pompeii LA by Declan Greene (dir. Tom Healey), as well as Medvedenko in Anton Chekhov’s The Seagull (dir. Connor Reidy). Dion also enjoys exploring character variation, which his was able to do in Alice Birch’s anti-patriarchal play Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again. (dir. Anthony Nicola) and Thornton Wilder’s metatheatrical piece The Skin of our Teeth (dir. Renato Musolino). In the Coming of Age Anthology (dir. Wayne Harrison), Dion played a variety of characters, ranging from a traumatised Latvian POW from Too Young for Ghosts, to the bumbling Vince from Brilliant Lies.

Dion has also worked on short film roles outside of Drama Centre, including the 2018 Flinders film students Honours film, I am Delta (dir. Tom Goldblatt). 

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Descent

Descent was written as the result of Dion’s desire to honour and explore his Italian background. Using the methods of self-devised artist Emma Beech and playwright Caleb Lewis, Dion wanted to use a combination of the two. In Descent, Dion plays a fictional version of himself, the piece blending direct to audience address with magic realism.

The version of the piece presented will be an adaptation of a full work Dion is beginning to write. 

Chrissy first discovered her love of performing arts at a young age, finding her passion in multiple youth groups throughout her childhood and teenage years. She has been a member of the Australian Girls Choir, SAYarts, Actors Ink and, after a gap year from high school, Chrissy decided to follow these passions and was accepted in Flinders University Drama Centre. 

During her four years of training, Chrissy had the opportunity to perform in a variety of roles including, Blanche in Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire (Dir. Tom Healey), Dinah, Boss and ensemble member in Alice Birch’s Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again. (Dir. Anthony Nicola), Doctor Dorn in Anton Chekhov’s The Seagull (Dir. Connor Reidy), Ariel in Shakespeare’s The Tempest (Dir. James Wardlaw), Rebecca Gibbs, Professor Willard and Stage Manager in Thornton Wilder’s Our Town (Dir. Genevieve Mooy), Laura, Caroline and Esta in Keziah Warner’s Control (Dir. Connor Reidy), Fortune Teller in Thornton Wilder’s The Skin of Our Teeth (Dir. Renato Musolino), as an ensemble member in Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s Pre-Paradise Sorry-Now (Dir. Tom Healey) and as a range of characters in Australian anthology Coming of Age in Australia (Dir. Wayne Harrison).

Chrissy also performed main roles in many short films during her time at Drama Centre, many of which she co-produced, edited and wrote. Outside of Drama Centre, she has collaborated on and featured in multiple short films, music videos and other short projects.

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French Toast

Under the guidance of playwright Caleb Lewis and emerging from the provocation ‘Now or Never’, French Toast was written as a glimpse into how individuals navigate the greatest of obstacles within their relationships. Chrissy has become interested in how couples define their love, define the perfect relationship and ultimately define what it means to ‘be enough’. This led her to wonder what people are willing to lose, and sacrifice, in order to live authentically, and the terror and turmoil that results from risking your biggest love and other half. 

Chrissy would love to write a collection of scenes, written for characters who are aching to live as their truest selves. These scenes would focus on the relationships that society comfortably ignores, the ones that feel too tricky to comprehend and the ones that challenge traditional views on age, gender and sexuality. 

This scene follows the internal dialogue of a young woman as she awaits her boyfriend at a café, faced with this terrifying choice; to risk losing her partner or to live bound in inauthenticity.  

Zoe’s love of acting sparked at eight-years-old when she joined a performance arts group. However, it was not until her later teen years that she discovered that this passion moved beyond a hobby and into a desired career path. The creativity and specificity necessary within acting drew Zoe in, but it was the endless possibilities of exploration and character creation that kept her there. 

During Zoe’s time at Drama Centre, she has had the opportunity to perform a variety of roles, with different stylistic focuses, including; an ensemble member in Pre-Paradise Sorry Now by Rainer Werner Fassbinder (Dir. Tom Healey), Mrs. Webb in Thornton Wilder’s Our Town (Dir. Genevieve Mooy), Pooty in Craig Lucas’ Reckless (Dir. James Wardlaw), Denise in Patricia Cornelius’ The Call (Dir. Tom Healey), Prospero in Shakespeare’s The Tempest (James Wardlaw), Nina in The Seagull by Benedict Andrews after Anton Chekhov (Dir. Connor Reidy), the Dinosaur, Announcer, and Ivy in Thornton Wilder’s The Skin of Our Teeth (Dir. Renato Musolino), and a range of characters within an Australian Anthology called Coming of Age in Australia including, Susy in David Williamson’s Brilliant Lies and Sheena in Debra Oswald’s The Peach Season (Dir. Wayne Harrison AM). She also starred, co-wrote, and produced an original short film called Damaged (Dir. Tait Muller) in 2021.

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Cold Feet

Zoe Jane Mills, under the guidance of Caleb Lewis, has written a monologue called Cold Feet. This piece follows the internal battle of a young woman as she lies awake next to her sleeping boyfriend, Jarred. Zoe has been investigating the portrayal of female characters in Australian theatre through the lens of the playwrights’ gender. She has used this research in tandem with the devising process to create an unapologetic female lead. Someone who is human. Someone who is scared. Someone who is flawed. This monologue was inspired by the song Meteor Shower by Cavetown, which includes the line, “I’d sell my own bones, for sapphire stones, cause blue is your favourite colour.” Love is a complex and selfless emotion, and sometimes being presented with that truth is terrifying. Through this devising process, Zoe’s monologue has seen many different variations and side stories that she hopes to continue developing later.

As a young child, Elvy-Lee was always singing, dancing, and acting- at home and at school. She knew immediately that she wanted to be a performer after watching Jerry Lewis films and the Vietnamese musical show series, Paris by Night, at the age of 6.

In her early teens, Elvy-Lee found joy in all types of artistic expression which then grew to a more serious passion for her, such as playing the piano, hip-hop and jazz dance, visual arts, writing and photography. After dreaming of becoming a K-Pop idol, at the age of 16, Elvy-Lee realised drama and theatrical storytelling was her future. 

Training at Drama Centre, Elvy-Lee has had the opportunity to play a range of diverse roles such as Myra and various characters in Pre-Paradise Sorry Now by Rainer Werner Fassbinder (Dir. Tom Healey, 2019), Mrs. Gibbs in Thornton Wilder’s Our Town (Dir. Genevieve Mooy, 2020), Doctors 1-6, Roy, TV Show Announcer, Receptionist in Reckless by Craig Lucas (Dir. James Wardlaw, 2021), Shakespeare’s Lady Macbeth in a scene showing of Macbeth (Dir. James Wardlaw, 2021), Alice Birch’s Revolt She Said Revolt Again (Dir. Anthony Nicola, 2021) as Worker, Employee and ensemble member, Masha in The Seagull by Benedict Andrews, after Anton Chekhov (Dir. Connor Reidy, 2021) and Sabina in Thornton Wilder’s The Skin of Our Teeth (Dir. Renato Musolino, 2022), and various characters in Australian anthology Coming of Age in Australia (Dir. Wayne Harrison AM). She has also been involved in several short films at Drama Centre including a 35-minute film at the end of third year, as well as starring in Under the Influence (Dir. Ella Le Fournour) for the 48-hour film festival in 2021. 

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Single Asian Female

Instead of appearing in today’s performance, Elvy-Lee is currently starring in Single Asian Female for the State Theatre Company of South Australia, in November at the Dunstan Playhouse. She is thrilled to be performing in her home town ahead of pursuing her acting career in theatre, film and television. She is eager to create passionate, socially and politically charged work, and is excited to make her mainstage debut in Single Asian Female.

James’ fierce appetite for acting and storytelling sprouted from performances of Grease to hotel audiences at 7 years old and a healthy, but perhaps excessive, love of video rentals. He continued to be involved in performance throughout his childhood and teen years, from directing short stop motion films to acting in school productions and youth theatre.  

Since joining Drama Centre, James’ performances have included: Mr Fitzpatrick in Thornton Wilder’s The Skin of Our Teeth (Dir. Renato Musolino), Shamrayev in The Seagull, by Benedict Andrews after Anton Chekhov (Dir. Connor Reidy), Gary in Patricia Cornelius’ The Call (Dir. Tom Healey), Macbeth (Dir. James Wardlaw), Andrew and Alex in Keziah Warner’s Control (Dir. Connor Reidy), Dr Gibbs and Sam Craig in Thornton Wilder’s Our Town (Dir. Genevieve Mooy), ensemble member in Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s Pre-Paradise Sorry Now (Dir. Tom Healey), and a range of characters, including Joe Cassidy from A Hard God, in Coming of Age in Australia (Dir. Wayne Harrison). Beyond these roles, James has had the opportunity to act in and edit multiple films from 2-minute shorts to a 35-minute feature. 

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Swedes are Too Good for Starbucks

Under the guidance of theatre maker Emma Beech, James Starbuck has created a devised piece called Swedes are Too Good for Starbucks (pun intended). The piece explores his relationship with his long-distance Swedish girlfriend, and how important it is to love and let yourself be loved.  It is also an exploration of autobiographical storytelling as a bisexual performer, and how to celebrate all sides of one’s love life, without sacrificing queerness. Featuring vitamin D deficiency, traveling to other side of the globe, Narnia, and sock puppets, James’ story is a celebration of love, play and adventure. James is passionate about telling LGBTQ+ stories, in all their facets, and reinterpreting old conventions for new generations of performers.