Beyond the Neck, at Theatre Works

First up, an admission. My job in the wake of the Port Arthur massacre on 28^th April, 1996, in which 35 people were murdered and 20 wounded, was to try to come up with strategies to restore tourism to the area.

I had visited the UNESCO world heritage listed site – Australia’s largest and most intact convict settlement – before the tragedy to learn about its history.

Beyond the Neck, which refers to the narrow strip of land with water on both sides that connects the mainland to the Tasman Peninsula, is about rebuilding after the trauma.

Photos by Steven Mitchell Wright

It is set a decade after the deadly shooting spree and focuses on four people.

A seven-year-old boy just wants to play cricket with his best friend.

A teenage girl isn’t inclined to play happy families with her mother and stepdad, who happens to be her father’s best mate.

A mother is on a holiday gifted to her by her colleagues.

And a 75-year-old guide runs regular Port Arthur tours. 

All have a connection to the massacre, which will be revealed as the narrative with musical components unfolds.

With an enlarged reproduction of Tasmanian artist Rodney Pople’s Glover Award winning painting “Port Arthur” as a backdrop, the story unravels in snippets.

Poetic in nature, it moves back and forth between character experiences.

Diversions or embellishments are called out by other characters and stopped in their tracks. 

The playwright is Tom Holloway.

Four fine actors, who do their roles proud, are Francis Greenslade as the guide, Emmaline Carroll Southwell as the mother, Cassidy Dunn as the teen and Freddy Collyer as the boy.

I appreciated the haunting music composition by Philip Mcleod, the sound design by Jack Burmeister, Richard Vabre’s lighting and the minimalistic set design by Emma Ashton.

Having said that, I wasn’t a fan of the bitsy nature of the piece, which frustrated me. 

Nor did I like the constant cries of “no” when the characters started deviating in their storytelling.

From a playwriting perspective, I was thinking just tell your tales. No need for extraneous enhancements.

I understand that the play is about the journey towards healing, but I didn’t appreciate this dramatic device.

Candidly, I found the 75-minute running time somewhat of a stretch. 

With direction from Suzanne Chaundy, Beyond the Neck is on at Theatre Works until 4^th April.

Thereafter, it moves to the West Gippsland Performing Arts Centre on 19^th April, The Round in Nunawading on 24^th April and the Clocktower Centre in Moonee Ponds on 1^st and 2^nd May, 2026.