theatre works and oscar o'brien present
by oscar o’brien
Antilton
2 - 12 APRIL | EXPLOSIVES FACTORY
by oscar o’brien
“Nobody will come watch this, and that’s if you could even legally do it. It’s simply got no legs”
“It has SIX legs!!!”
A struggling artist has the strange idea to take Lin-Manuel Miranda’s global smash hit musical Hamilton, and recreate it almost word for word, except for one key difference: now it’s about ants instead of people. Worse yet- they want to perform it in their own backyard, and have roped their roommates into the production!
The living room becomes a rehearsal space, old friends and complete strangers are brought onboard, and everyone knows it’s a circus, except for the writer, the director and the star (all the same person). Friendships will be pushed to the limit, insults will be hurled, someone will even book a gig in a Stan Original, but worst of all is this: theatre kids will try to rap.
Among the cast of this possibly illegal rip-off are the Skeptic, best friend and biggest critic, the Enabler, who literally can’t say no, the Talent, someone with an actual career at stake, and Nervous Noel, who is exactly as his name suggests.
The first full length play written and directed by Oscar O’Brien, Antilton was born from the feeling of hopelessness and shame that comes from being an independent artist with no prospects on the horizon, and the lengths we can go to just for validation as a creator. This slightly absurd, very meta oddball comedy play also explores the lengths mates will go to- even when their mate might be absolutely cooked.
VENUE
Explosives Factory, Rear Laneway 67 Inkerman Street, St Kilda
DURATION
80 minutes
WARNINGS
Loud noises, Flashing lights, swearing and yelling. Themes around depression. Performers standing above ground level.
ACCESSIBILITY
Explosives Factory is accessed via a flight of stairs and is not wheelchair accessible.
DATES + TIMES
Wednesday 2 April 7:30pm (Preview)
Thursday 3 April 7:30pm (Opening)
Friday 4 April 7:30pm
Saturday 5 April 7:30pm
Tuesday 8 April 7:30pm
Wednesday 9 April 7:30pm
Thursday 10 April 7:30pm
Friday 11 April, 7:30pm
Saturday 12 April 7:30pm
Theatre Works has a lockout policy for latecomers. Please arrive at least 15 minutes early to ensure you don't miss out.
Refunds will not be issued to latecomers.
TICKETS
FULL PRICE
$35.00
CONCESSION*
$28.00
PREVIEW
$25.00
RUSH TIX**
$20.00
MOB TIX
$25.00
*Seniors, Student, MEAA, Health Care and Low Income card holders
**Limited to 20 tickets per performance
Our FRESH WORKS program is for Early Career Artists. Similar to our WITH THEATRE WORKS program but for those less along in their producing and making journey. In addition to producing, marketing, PR and production support, FRESH WORKS artists have access to creative, technical and producing mentorship.
CREDITS
WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY
Oscar O’Brien
MOVEMENT DIRECTOR & SOUND DESIGNER
Meg Richardson
MUSIC BY
Finlay Rennie
PRODUCTION MANAGER
Tristan Sicari
MEET THE ARTIST -
Oscar O'Brien
Oscar O’Brien (He/Him) is a Melbourne/Naarm based creator, originally from Horsham in regional Victoria where he developed a love for performing, going on to complete a Bachelor of Performing Arts at Federation University Arts Academy in Ballarat. Since graduating in 2022, Oscar has engaged with the Melbourne independent theatre scene, performing in works as a part of Melbourne Fringe and Melbourne International Comedy Festival. Oscar has taken great pride in performing in venues such as The Motley Bauhaus and La Mama Theatre. In 2023, Oscar wrote his first full length play, Antilton, which was workshopped as part of an Artist Residency with GPAC in Traralgon in January of 2024, and is now ready to see the stage in full.