''The Vegemite Tales'' is a comedy theatrical production written by

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal A ...

playwright Melanie Tait. The play revolves around the lives of a group of young antipodeans

sharing Sharing is the joint use of a resource or space. It is also the process of dividing and distributing. In its narrow sense, it refers to joint or alternating use of inherently finite goods, such as a common pasture or a shared residence. Still ...

a flat in Hammersmith, west

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. It has been described as an Australian stage version of '' Friends''. The name is taken from the iconic Australian food paste,

Vegemite Vegemite ( ) is a thick, dark brown Australian food spread made from leftover brewers' yeast extract with various vegetable and spice additives. It was developed by Cyril Callister in Melbourne, Victoria, in 1922. A spread for sandwiches, ...

Background

''The Vegemite Tales'' was first staged at The Curtain's Up, a small fringe theatre in west London in 2001. It was an overnight sell-out, finding enormous popularity with London's Australian,

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

and

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

n communities. Contemporary themes include living in a shared house, living in a city far away from home, dealing with different cultures and making the difficult decision to stop putting real life on hold and move back home. It has been reviewed as relying on cliches about living in London.

Cast

The 2006 season featured Blair McDonough (ex '' Neighbours'' and Australian '' Big Brother''). Other cast members have included

Jonathon Dutton Jonathon Dutton (born 13 August 1981) is an Australian actor and director. From 1998 to 2002, Dutton played Tad Reeves in '' Neighbours''. He later returned to the show as a director. Dutton has also appeared in '' MDA'', ''Two Pints of Lager ...

, Sarah Hadland, Josephine Taylor, Patrick Harvey, Craig Rasmus, Tim Cove, Maxine Morrison, Priscilla Jackman, Dimity Harris, Christa Nicola, Spencer McLaren, Billy Gentle, Felicity Jurd, Justin Segal, Louis Sanchez, and Craig Giovanelli.

Production

It has run at the Old Red Lion and the Courtyard. In 2005 the show had a 12-week sell-out season at the

Riverside Studios Riverside Studios is an arts centre on the banks of the River Thames in Hammersmith, London, England. The venue plays host to contemporary performance, film, visual art exhibitions and television production. Having closed for redevelopment i ...

, a London arts venue well known for its international theatre programme. In 2006 the production made its successful West End debut at The Venue (now The Leicester Square Theatre). In 2007 the production had its second West End season at The Venue from 26 July to 27 October. The production has been directed by Melanie Tait (2001-2003) and Bill Buckhurst (2004-2007). It has been produced by Andrew Robb (also the actor for the character of Sam). Over 60,000 people have seen ''The Vegemite Tales'' since it was first staged.

References

External links

AusStage play listing
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vegemite Tales, The Australian plays 2001 plays