Acknowledgement of Country

We acknowledge and pay respect to the Gulidjan and Gadubanud peoples; the Traditional Owners and Elders of the land on which COPACC operates.
We acknowledge their connection to creative practice on these lands and extend our respect to First Nations people throughout our communities.

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You Are Here : Home / COPACC THEATRE SEASON/Black Hole Theatre: Someone in the Dark

Black Hole Theatre: Someone in the Dark

Next date: Tuesday, 04 June 2024 | 10:00 AM to 10:45 AM

Website image - Someone in the dark - COPACC 2024 (1).jpg

by Tracey Rigney (Wotjobaluk/Ngarrindjeri)

In front of a large dome, camouflaged by leaves and pieces of bark, the audience is greeted by a flustered host. The host asks the audience if they have seen a large, scruffy bird running around, squawking, looking for a way out, The bird is Mr Fowl who was supposed to be there to tell them about his house (the dome), but he’s had a temper tantrum and left. As the host starts to explain what is going on, a voice from within the dome calls out, wondering who is there. Relieved, the host asks them to come out - but the voice refuses and won’t come out - but maybe the audience would like to come in?

The audience take off their shoes and dig a door into the dome. They enter through a tunnel, thinking they’re entering the big dome, but Surprise! They find themselves instead inside a small white glowing egg, greeted by a malleefowl chick – Mallee – who doesn’t want to hatch. She welcomes the children, learns their names, plays games with them, and all is fun until suddenly the egg cracks open! A lost baby echidna, Puggle, has fallen into the mound and onto the egg. The egg disappears – magic, and Mallee must learn to navigate the big wide world, with some help from the audience.

The children enjoy the show from inside the big spherical mound, its entire surface animated by 360º video projections. They experience a series of (digital) encounters with things that go bump in the night: Creepy crawlies, worms, winking eyes, ants, a mouse, and a snake. The gang decide which to chase for lunch, and which to chase away. And do so! The critters by and large get away….thanks to an in-house operator with an iPad. The mud walls of the mound give way to a glittering night sky. Feral cats are lurking, but dawn arrives, and when a flock of Wimmera butterflies appear, the children themselves become puppeteers. A feather on a breath wind leads them home.

On the outside, children have an interactive Q & A session with the puppeteers and production team, learning about the Wimmera, the malleefowl way of life, have a turn with the puppets and learn about how the technical elements of the production came together.