A brand new comedy-drama looking at a gloriously dysfunctional Australian family, Spencer tells the story of a tight-knit family led by single-mum matriarch Marilyn and her three adult children – wayward daughter Jules, mouthy coulda-been Ben and AFL golden-boy Scott.

About to meet the young son – Spencer – he never knew he had, Scott and the family have returned home to help mark the occasion. With the surprise appearance of the father they barely remember, the entire family is forced to work together to clean up both the house and their own fractured relationships as the clock ticks down to Spencer’s arrival.

Written by award-winning playwright Katy Warner (A Prudent Man, Dropped), Spencer asks us to consider how much our family defines who we are, and whether we ever really grow up…

★★★★★ "This may very well be the birth of a future Australian classic." - The Music

★★★★★ "Spencer is full of love and family and all the crap that happens with those two things. It'll stick in your mind." - Theatre People

★★★★1/2 "Family comic drama at its finest." - The Lowdown Under

"As good as watching The Castle or Kath and Kim. Hilarious and hurts in all the right places - because it's us." - Sometimes Melbourne

Venue Format
Theatre, Black Box Venue
Technical Rating
C
Touring Party
7
Considerations

Like most suburban family homes outside Ramsay Street, there is some swearing.

The set is a small room approximately 6m x 6m, with a wall extending down the OP side at an angle. This may cause a sightline issue with some wider auditoria that may necessitate blocking out some seats. Please refer to the production images and Presenter Pack for further information, and contact us if you think this may a concern.

Our tech team will provide a comprehensive redrafted design for your individual venue using your existing stock, LX bars and dimensions to A) minimise sightline issues and B) enable a full pre-rig to be undertaken. This will be completed as soon as practical after contracting, and no later than three weeks prior to arrival.

Lab Kelpie is a theatre company dedicated to the production of new work by Australian playwrights.

Established as a not-for-profit incorporated association with a board of experienced and passionate industry professionals, we actively seek out works that engage audiences by interrogating with intelligence and vigour how relationships, power and politics function in the twenty first century.

As strong advocates of new writing, we support Australian playwrights by commissioning, developing, presenting and touring their work, encouraging our writers to take risks and inspire audiences with the themes and messages they want to explore.

“One of Australia’s most exciting independent theatre companies on the rise.” – Maxim Boon, The Music

Since we began in 2012 we have presented over 243 performances to 17,894 audiences in 87 venues across Australia and New Zealand.

Company Website
labkelpie.com

Unique Selling Point

Audiences are hungry for work that reflects their world back at them. They want to see themselves on stage. They want to invest in character. They want to feel. They want to laugh. They may not think they want to, but even a good cathartic cry is welcome! Spencer provides your audience with all this, and sees them leaving on a high.

Spencer employs classic Australian vernacular, lashings of humour and recognisable characters and situations to explore issues of self-acceptance, identity and family dynamics - in a hilarious, enjoyable night out for anyone 16+, and perfect for traditional non-theatre-goers.

Marketing Materials

We have prepared a comprehensive Presenter Pack and Marketing Toolkit document for your venue, and access to our growing bank of marketing material including:

  • Hero, production and rehearsal images
  • Social media collateral in all sizes, and advice on usage
  • Promo Video individually branded to your venue
  • Poster and flyer design templates
  • Press releases
  • Five-star reviews
  • Prepared interviews
  • Secondary Education Packs

A script will also be published and available for purchase.

Community Engagement

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT & EDUCATION MENU NOW AVAILABLE TO DOWNLOAD

Writer Katy Warner is a fully qualified secondary teacher and a multi-award-winning author and playwright, and may be available to engage with the community through writing workshops, while our cast of five performers are equally experienced as workshop facilitators, offering various play building workshops and masterclasses to compliment the show.

Spencer presents an opportunity for the community to start conversations around some vital topics like self-acceptance, self-expression, identity and depression.

We are therefore very open to developing a community engagement program or workshop with each presenter tailored to the needs of their community, whether in the form of more structured acting workshops, to cast Q&As or informal post-show meet and greets.

Contact us at education@labkelpie.com for more information.