Ribbon Gang to steal the stage in Thirroul

Director Stephen Goldrick was a Helensburgh resident who used to sing with Songsmiths and Mendala, and now lives in Corrimal. Here he shares the story of his musical show, Anvil

This April, Players In Exile present their musical play, Anvil, featuring an Irish widow, a blacksmith who leads the Ribbon Gang in their fight for freedom in the tumultuous world of 1830 New South Wales. I co-wrote the show – we had a sell-out premiere season in 2019, and we’d planned to stage it last year but COVID came. Now we’ve got a fresh cast and new venues. We’re concentrating on heart-felt story-telling with a strong cast of singer/actors.

One hot day, ticket-of-leave man, Ralph Entwistle, takes off his clothes and swims in the river to cool down. Unluckily the governor’s carriage clatters by and the authorities punish Entwistle with fifty flesh-tearing lashes for “affronting the governor”. Soon official cruelty leads to rebellion. The heroine, “Anvil”, joins him and 120 convicts and farm workers range the bush between Bathurst, Goulburn and the Abercrombie Caves, where the last gang members are rounded up and sent to Bathurst to be hanged.

The music by Wollongong composer Lisa Lockett is very beautiful – it frames the stirring story of one woman challenging the social facades and repression of the English hierarchy. “Anvil” has three local shows, then the revolution hits Sydney as a celebration of how the past has shaped our present, and of how heart-rich live theatre shows are coming back – and of course it’s also a special Easter holiday event.

Thirroul performances 8 & 9 April at C3, 345 Lawrence Hargrave Drive. Tickets at https://www.trybooking.com/BXPGH

Sydney performances 13 – 23 April at Flight Path Theatre, 142 Addison Road, Marrickville. Tickets at www.flightpaththeatre.org

For further information please email: play@playersinexile.com.au