One hundred years. Five women. One actor.

A sceptic. A paranoiac. A criminal. A migrant. A hostage.

BEGOTTEN is the 100-year history of a family, told through the eyes of five women. In Alice, Eileen, Clea, Hazel and Laoise, we see dignities lost and claimed, hearts shattered and mended, and the thread of feminine soul passed down through five generations. This powerful new work by award-winning playwright Bianca Butler Reynolds explores the changing role of women over time, the fight for female autonomy, the complexities of motherhood, and the echoes of the past that resonate in the present. These are five distinct women, but their connection to one another runs deep, and cannot be undone.

Minola Theatre presented BEGOTTEN as part of Anywhere Festival 2021 in Brisbane, Ipswich and Moreton Bay, and received the arTour Anywhere Festival Award for this production. BEGOTTEN also played to a sold out crowd at Wynnum Fringe in November 2020.

Audience comments: "The best new work I think I’ve ever seen." "A powerhouse one woman show that deserves a bigger stage." "I’ve not been so moved by a piece of live performance in a long time." "It’s genuinely one of the most powerful and affecting 90 minutes of theatre I’ve ever seen."

Venue Format
Hall, Black Box Venue
Technical Rating
D, The production can be modified to suit most venues
Touring Party
2
Considerations

WARNINGS: This show contains coarse language, adult themes and references to domestic violence. It is recommended for mature audiences (15+).

STAGING: The play is designed to be performed in the round, with audience members in a circle of non-fixed seating, on the same floor level as the performer. Lighting and sound requirements are minimal and can be adapted to suit most venues.

EQUIPMENT: Set and props pack down to a single suitcase, and can be transported by the touring party (2 people).

Minola Theatre is a collaboration between Brisbane-based artists Bianca Butler Reynolds and Kat Dekker, with an emphasis on 'Timeless stories told for now'. Bianca is an award-winning playwright, performer, producer and teaching artist. Kat is a director, producer and teaching artist.

Founded in early 2019, Minola Theatre has created seven shows to date, including the award-winning production of their original play BEGOTTEN as part of Anywhere Festival 2021. Their 2019 season of Mary Anne Butler's HIGHWAY OF LOST HEARTS was Highly Commended in the Anywhere Festival Awards. Minola Theatre completed an internship with acclaimed visual theatre company Dead Puppet Society in 2020, culminating in a work-in-progress showing of their devised piece SELKIE & LUNA at Brisbane Powerhouse. Other production credits include GRACE by Craig Wright and LOVE YOU HATE YOU DRIVE YOU WILD by Bianca Butler Reynolds.

In addition to productions, Minola Theatre offers an extensive array of workshops and community engagement activities, with programs designed for youth, seniors, community theatre groups, practising artists and diverse marginalised communities. Workshop clients include Communify, Richmond Fellowship Queensland and Growl Theatre. Training is offered across numerous themes, including physical performance, script analysis, empowered storytelling, Shakesperean theatre and Jungian archetypal theory for artists.

Company Website
minolatheatre.com.au

Unique Selling Point

BEGOTTEN is a universal story told on an intimate scale. Played in the round, the audience are invited to engage eye to eye with the sole performer, as she weaves a fireside story of mothers, daughters, intergenerational trauma and healing. Playwright-performer Bianca Butler Reynolds transforms seamlessly between five bodies and minds across 85 minutes, beginning with cynical millennial Alice, through paranoid 90s housewife Eileen, vengeful Vietnam War-era Clea, World War II Londoner Hazel, and the mysteriously gifted Irish matriarch, Laoise. Frank, humorous, heartfelt and agonising, BEGOTTEN challenges audiences to consider the pain and beauty of their own family lineage.

Marketing Materials

Minola Theatre is pleased to provide the following materials to help promote BEGOTTEN:

  • Marketing copy
  • Poster and flyer templates
  • Marketing images
  • Dress rehearsal images
  • A complete audio drama recording of the play (85 minutes) (Access at https://minolatheatre.com.au/begotten-radio/)
  • Educational notes (on request)

Community Engagement

Minola Theatre is pleased to offer community workshops and masterclasses as an accompaniment to their touring production of BEGOTTEN. Workshops can be offered in the areas of physicality in performance, writing for performance and monologue performance. Other available workshop topics (not directly linked to BEGOTTEN) include Theatre of the Oppressed, Shakespeare, Jungian archetypal theory for artists, personal storytelling for improved wellbeing, creative writing, and directing. All workshops will attract a modest additional fee, and offer great value to attendees. Workshops can be targeted to youth, hobby actors, seniors, vulnerable communities, or a general adult audience.