What else is war but competition? A profit-building enterprise!
Even after the war starts consuming her kids, Mother Courage reminds us not to knock it. War forges virtue and cash. War feeds its people better. Peace produces zip. No innovation or heroes or people with courage. And the world needs courage, doesn’t it?
Mother Courage and Her Children is Brecht’s most ambitious play. It’s a warning shot fired from a century ravaged by total war.
After 80 years of unsurpassed influence, it remains sardonic, compassionate, drunk, camp, muddy, epic, tiny, strange, hilarious, brutal and shockingly alive.
‘[Popov] slips between an array of characters with mastery yet without fanfare. It is amazing to see her do it.’ — What Did She Think? (ANNA)
‘…theatre that dares to mean something…‘ — Alison Croggon (Marlin, written by Damien Millar)
Content warning: Blood. Haze. Strobe Lighting. Oblique references to sexual violence during war—acknowledged but not graphically described.
Written by Bertolt Brecht
Translated by Tony Kushner
Directed by Damien Millar
Assistant Director and Choreographer Michael Lindner
Performed by Bagryana Popov, Kate Bayley, Richard Bligh, Rodrigo Calderón, Tom Considine, Lakshmi Ganapathy, Nathan Milne, and Claude Sarmiento
Set and and costume design by Lara Week
Lighting design by Shane Grant
Music by Paul Doogood and Damien Millar
Stage managed by Kat Carrington
Produced by Lara Week and Bagryana Popov
Image by Darren Gill
Access Information:
Relaxed Performance: Sunday 12 June 4pm
Visual rating 50%: Events are partly subtitled or include dialogue, background music and/or sounds, so d/Deaf and hard of hearing audiences can have some engagement with the event.
Aural Rating 50%: Has both sound and visual components, but sight isn’t essential to be able to engage with the event.
