Sincere Apologies, at Trades Hall - 55 minutes

There are apologies and then there are apologies.

Some are genuinely heartfelt, while others are confected. In other words, the latter aren’t real apologies.

Still, all get a workout in the highly interactive and engaging show, Sincere Apologies.

Positioned alongside a standing microphone in the middle of a few rows of wooden seating in the round is a small see through box.

Inside are 50 envelopes, each containing a card, on which are written details of one of 50 apologies.

Photo by Mark Gambino (front page photo by Lucy Parakhina)

Some are personal, others corporate or political, and then there are those that are entertainment or sporting focused.

Among them, some were originally handwritten, others video based or delivered at a media conference. 

Some are highly amusing, others serious, distressing even.

The topics raised include biosecurity, the Melbourne Fringe Festival, upsetting a spouse, air travel, an automated phone service, Kanye West and a Google review.

There is the ignominy of the Australian cricket team after the South African ball tampering scandal and errors of judgment concerning a live mike.

We hear an apology to Meat Loaf and his family, and to the Stolen Generation and Adam Goodes.

A car crash, coronial findings regarding Azaria Chamberlain, Alan Jones, a major oil spill and the closure of a chicken restaurant are also ripe for the picking.

War injustices, an earthquake, Nuremberg, a bird call, Tiger Woods, the UFC and the LA bushfires are also covered.

Although the vast majority of apologies are real, there are also concocted examples moving into the 2030s, 2040s and 2100s.

At the start of the show, to an apologetic tune, the audience plays a game of pass the parcel.

When the music stops, the person who has the parcel – in fact an envelope, separate from the 50 I have mentioned – reads the instructions for what is to follow.

Three volunteers distribute the 50 envelopes to those in attendance.

Photo by Lucy Parakhina

One by one, in number order, we open the envelopes and read aloud the contents into either the central mike or four others in the room.

At times, as we listen, we are conscious of background sounds, which help set the mood.

Much laughter and some sharp intakes of breath ensue.

It is a simple, but clever idea, which is very well executed.

Sincere Apologies was created by Dan Koop, Jamie Lewis and David Williams, although the original idea for the show was all but an accident.

It dates back to 2018, when Roslyn Oades and David Williams were teaching a course at the VCA.

When they discovered that neither could attend the first lecture, they crafted an auto-lecture to be delivered by the students, filled with apologies.

That morphed into a question posed during COVID-19 lockdown as to whether the auto-lecture could work as a performance.

Having just watched Sincere Apologies, my answer is blood oath – a resounding “yes”.

It works damn well.

My only reservation was that creators Koop, Lewis and Williams inserted themselves into the apologies, which I thought was unnecessary.

Nevertheless, what they have crafted is engaging, thought provoking and entertaining.

Fifty-five minutes in duration, Sincere Apologies is on at The Square at Trades Hall, as part of the Melbourne Fringe Festival, until 19^th October, 2025.

For more information and tickets, go to https://www.melbournefringe.com.au/whats-on/events/sincere-apologies