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The global season premiere of Trent Dalton’s Boy Swallows Universe, adapted for the stage by Tim McGarry, opened the 2021 Brisbane Festival and broke box office records to become QPAC’s best-selling drama and best-selling show. of the Queensland Theater in all of its history.
The best-selling Australian debut novel of all time, Boy Swallows Universe continues its meteoric rise with the theatrical adaptation directed by Sam Strong whose season has been extended three times, resulting in a sold-out release of six. weeks at 100% capacity in the QPAC Playhouse seen by nearly 40,000 people.
In a partnership as formidable as Brett Kenny and the Paramatta Eels, the co-presentation between QPAC, Queensland Theater and Brisbane Festival, has been met with overwhelming praise from critics and audiences alike.
The cast and creative team received standing ovations for lifting the grain, nostalgia, magical realism and – above all – the heart of the book and enhancing it in a theatrical setting.
More remarkable than Eli’s Great Escape from Boggo Road Prison on Christmas Day, the stage adaptation of Boy Swallows Universe is an epic, scale dream show and is the most ambitious and complex spectacle in the world. Queensland Theater to date.
Thirteen actors play over 30 characters wearing over 50 different costumes; and a catalog of over 94 props is dotted with over 40 different scenes – from the glistening waters of Redcliffe’s Hornibrook Bridge to Darra’s two-story brick social housing – projected against a seven-meter-high backdrop.
Arts Minister Leeanne Enoch said it had been so exciting for Queensland audiences to be the very first to experience the fascinating stage version of Trent Dalton’s story about his childhood in suburban Brisbane.
Minister Enoch said:
The unprecedented success of Boy Swallows Universe is to be applauded and celebrated.
Congratulations to the Brisbane Festival, the Queensland Theater and the Queensland Performing Arts Center for their success in joining forces to develop and present this historic production of a work unique to Brisbane.
The Queensland Government’s investment is supporting the Brisbane Festival, QPAC and the Queensland Theater to create new Queensland works and provide employment and creative development opportunities for our phenomenally talented artists and art workers.
The arts, cultural and creative industries are essential to the implementation of Queensland’s post-COVID-19 economic recovery plan, contributing $ 8.5 billion to the state’s economy each year and supporting more than 92 000 jobs for Queenslanders.
APQC chief executive John Kotzas said the world premiere of Boy Swallows Universe was a record breaking one and audiences were deeply moved by the show.
Mr. Kotzas Saïd.
Trent has always said that Boy Swallows Universe is from Brisbane, and I’m so proud of our city for doing what it takes to make us run at 100% capacity, allowing more people to see this show. special. The love and triumph that surrounds this season has certainly made us realize the privilege of being one of the few major venues open in Australia right now.
The audience was moved to see our city represented with such clarity and care on stage. The best stories can change the way you see the world around you and I love the idea that a member of the public could see the express bus to Bracken Ridge walk past them on their way home and see it under a whole new day.
Queensland Theater Artistic Director Lee Lewis has said Boy Swallows Universe is the perfect Brisbane story to tell right now.
Ms Lewis said:
I cannot stress enough how important it is to present this story of triumph over adversity, love overcoming trauma, and aiming for the stars with unbridled optimism when the going is most desperate.
This show has been loved, dreamed of, desired and worked on for over three years now and the enormous heart given to it by everyone who worked on it or who looked forward to seeing it radiates from the theater every night. . I am incredibly proud that the Queensland Theater has managed to put on this beautiful production and that so many people are thrilled, moved and captivated by it.
Brisbane Festival Artistic Director Louise Bezzina said she was thrilled, not surprised, at the extraordinary success of this page-to-page production of Trent Dalton’s beloved novel.
Ms Bezzina said:
We are so privileged to have had this opportunity to co-produce this flagship work and finally present it to the world. It has been a shining light of our 2021 program.
The Brisbane Festival 2021 curatorial office had two things at its heart: community and celebration. Boy Swallows Universe sums up both elements and I am proud that we were able to present this heartfelt and ultimately joyful story of Brisbane featuring so many of our incredibly talented local artists and art workers.
I couldn’t imagine a better way to open the Brisbane Festival than with the world premiere of Boy Swallows Universe.
Boy Swallows Universe is presented by the Queensland Theater, Brisbane Festival and QPAC, and runs at the Playhouse until October 9, 2021.
Season details
Location: PlayHouse, Queensland Theater
For more information, click here
