Anatomy of a Suicide
Written by Alice Birch
Winner of the 2018 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize for playwriting, Anatomy of a Suicide is a powerful and unflinching look at a family afflicted with severe intergenerational depression and mental illness. Carol, Anna and Bonnie are each at various stages of mental collapse. In a stunning theatrical triptych about mothers and daughters, Birch interrogates the impact of suicide across three generations of women and questions whether genetic inheritance or social environment determines our character. Featuring a large cast of ten performing in three simultaneous time periods, Anatomy of a Suicide is a thought-provoking and haunting examination of human behaviour at its most extreme.
Played the Old Fitz Theatre in Woolloomooloo, Sydney from 13 June to 6 July, 2019
Written by Alice Birch
Director Shane Anthony
Set Design Shane Anthony & Gus Murray | Costume Design Siobhán Jett O’Hanlon | Lighting Design Veronique Benett
Composition Damien Lane | Dialect Coach Danielle Roffe
Stage Management Caroline McAllister
Production Assistant Madeline Macrae | Costume Assistant Bobbi Rickards
Producer Gus Murray
Starring
Danielle Catanzariti, Jack Crumlin, Andrea Demetriades, Teale Howie, Charles Mayer, Guy O’Grady,
Natalie Saleeba, Anna Samson, Kate Skinner, Contessa Treffone
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Sydney Theatre Awards 2019 Nominations
Best Ensemble
Best Female Actor in a Leading Role in an Independent Production - Kate Skinner
Best Stage Design of an Independent Production - Shane Anthony & Gus Murray
Best Costume Design of an Independent Production - Siobhán Jett O’Hanlon
GLUGS Awards 2019
Nominated for Most Outstanding Independent Production
Nominated for Most Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role in a Play - Andrea Demetriades
Winner of Most Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Play - Contessa Treffone
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This production was generously supported by Seaborn, Broughton & Walford Foundation | City of Sydney
Creative Practice Lab, UNSW | International Screen Academy | Sport For Jove Theatre
“Haunting and immersive, yet subtle in its manoeuvring of the complexities of motherhood and female pain.” ★★★★
— TimeOut Sydney
“A remarkable production on all levels. When you book, book twice because this is a play of infinite depth and excellence, and curiosity will drive you back. Standing on the pavement afterwards asking your companion why they gasped at a time when you were laughing won’t satisfy.” ★★★★1/2
— Judith Greenaway
“Birch’s intricate cross-referencing requires actors to weave a complex tapestry of words and images and the play is unflinching to the point of unrelenting in its depiction of women at their lowest ebb. It demands performances of finesse and range.” ★★★★
— Jason Blake, Audrey Journal
“In this highly inventive play, the… simultaneous storytelling is an unusual form, but it well serves the play’s subject matter. It suggests that what happens to one woman echoes down the generations; an eternal present in which the corrosive past lingers.” ★★★★
— Joyce Morgan, Sydney Morning Herald
Gallery
Production Photography Kate Williams & Jens Radda | Promotional Photography Johnny Nicolaidis
