MAY & JUNE 2022
Based on Thomas Keneally’s historical novel, “The Playmaker,” Our Country’s Good tells the true story of Australia’s first theatrical performance in 1789. The new penal colony in New South Wales, in what is now the city of Sydney, is populated by British Royal Navy, Marines, convicted petty thieves, prostitutes, and murderers. A Royal Marine lieutenant casts a motley group of convicts to present a Restoration comedy for the celebration of King Goerge III’s birthday. In order to defend his production to both the British officers and the criminals, he must convince them that “there is more to life than crime and punishment.” The play is produced against a backdrop of food shortages and barbaric prison punishments. Yet as the barrier between captors and captives breakdown, they start to discover each other both on stage and behind the scenes.
Cast
Pat Towne
Robert Cesario
Kila Packett
Tavis Baker
Patrick Brooker
Sam Cass
Esdras Toussaint
Schuyler Mastain
Grace Hawthorn
Daisy Donohue
Michaela Ivey
Danny Brown
Production Team
Set Designer: Clay Wilcox
Costume Designer: Lena Sands
Light Designer: Leigh Allen
Sound Designer: Nick Foran
Prop Master: Rachel Ross-Sullivan
Dialect Coach: Deborah Ross-Sullivan
Gallery
In the Press
"A Stellar Production of 'Our Country's Good' at South Pasadena Theatre Workshop" – SOUTH PASADENAN, JUNE 6, 2022
"Like a lotus flower in full bloom growing through mud, beauty and laughter is created in the most dire of circumstances, and “Our Country’s Good” is a stirring tale that poignantly illustrates the power of the creative spirit." - Alisa Hayashida, South Pasadenan
"Full Cast Announced for Our Country's Good at South Pasadena Theatre Workshop" – BROADWAY WORLD, APRIL 7, 2022
"Our Country's Good wrestles with themes prominent in a colonial world: a penal system that allows the corrupt to abuse their power; a bombastic, yet sincere discussion of how society should be treating the imprisoned; the subjugation and abuse of women; forbidden love; and the effects of PTSD on soldiers." - A. A. Cristi, Broadway World