A Stretch of the Imagination
Presented by: Solus Productions
24 June - 5 July
The Studio
‘If time were slower there’d be more of the present to dwell upon the past’
Surreal Black comedy/Poignant Satire
Monk is a distinctly unpleasant man. But he is also, at the end of the day, a very honest one and there is a strong impression that he has gone into this voluntary exile, living in a humpy on One Tree Hill (he has actually chopped down the tree in a fit of pique), in order to confront his past and through this confrontation to explore his own creativity – in effect, to create himself all over again using the raw materials of the life he has already lived.
Beneath Monk’s aggression, crudity and callous rejection of other human beings, there is despair. He has lacked the courage to commit to intimacy… and is now on a quest to find his Self. But his quest is paradoxical: he must learn to be alone, but literal aloneness is both solipsistic and narcissistic and can only result in a distorted view of the Self.
SOLUS Productions returns to Holden Street Theatre this June with award-winning playwright Jack Hibberd’s poignant, captivating and poetic one man play. A STRETCH OF THE IMAGINATION premiered at The Pram factory, Carlton in 1972. It is regarded by most connoisseurs as Hibberd’s finest work, embodying a radical advance in the character of Australian theatre, embracing and remoulding as it does many of the strong strands in theatrical modernism.
Neil Jillet described the play as “probably the most beautiful Australian play ever written”
Bob Crimeen said “Hibberd’s masterpiece of hallucinations and shattered dreams gives the actor the chance to prove his mettle in tragic-comedy”
By arrangement with John Timlin of the Jack Hibberd Estate
The Studio at Holden Street Theatres
Holden Street Theatres, 32-34 Holden Street, Hindmarsh, Kaurna Country
Step-free mobility aid access through the main entrance with an accessible bathroom.
Duration: 80 minutes
Evenings: June 24 - July 5th
ALL SHOWS 8:00pm
Venue & Bar Open 1 hour before the show starts and stays open one hour after the show ends.
Age Suitability: PG
Early Bird: $25.30
Adult: $33.90
Preview: $28.30
Concession: $28.30
Child 15-17 yrs: $28.30
Group 5+: $28.30
(A shared 2.50% Card Processing Fee is applied to the Gross)
High Audio Content
Meet the Team
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Tony Knight
DIRECTOR
TONY KNIGHT was educated at Sydney Grammar School, and trained at the Drama Centre London, which includes in its alumni Colin Firth, Frances de la Tour, Paul Bettany, Penelope Wilton, Michael Fassbinder and Tom Hardy. Tony has considerable knowledge, experience ad expertise as a professional acting teacher and director. Tony has been the Program Leader for the Musical Theatre (B.A. Hons.) course at the LaSalle College of the Arts, Singapore, developing and implementing a new curriculum. He was the Head of Acting at Australia’s National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA), training some of Australia’s most celebrated national and international actors, such as Cate Blanchett, Sam Worthington, Alex O’Loughlin and Miranda Otto. Tony has taught, directed and lectured in many parts of the world, including Australia, the USA, Japan, Romania, Singapore and Tonga. He has spoken at numerous international and national conferences, including the annual ITI-Drama Schools Conference in Romania, and at the Musical Theatre Educators Conference, in Perth 2015, which included delivering a paper re current research - What’s Hidden Underneath: Secrets & Sex –The Pajama Game and American Drama n the early 1950s, the Age of McCarthyism, HUAC, and The Kinsey Report. Tony has a passionate interest in all the performing arts, and dedicated to improving the training of young actors. He is now freelancing and completing his PhD on Richard Burbage: Shakespeare’s Actor & the Art of ‘Personation’. Now resident in Adelaide, South Australia, Tony He has been teaching at SA Casting and Angela Heesom Casting, as well as his own private classes , and directing and producing, including two successful professional productions - Harold Pinter’s Old Times and William Mastrosimone’s Extremities at the Adelaide Festival Centre.
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Marc Clement
PERFORMER
Marc Clement has been an actor for over 30 years in theatre and film. Clement is cofounder of the successful STARC productions and has branched out with another company SOLUS Production, delivering edgy and thought provoking plays across all genres.
Marc’s theatre credits include lead role of Alfie in Alfie, Mr. Orange in Reservoir Dogs, Johnny in Frankie & Johnny, Deeley in Old Times, and Mitch in the award winning production of A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, also Cast in for State Opera's HAMLET (2019) and many many more. Marc has been nominated by the Adelaide Critics Circle for 'Individual award' 'Best Play (Constellations)' and 'Best body of Work'(2020)
Marc also teaches acting at 4 acting schools around Adelaide and is heavily involved in the film industry, winning awards for ‘Best Actor’ Best Director' and 'Best Editor' He is also a musician and has almost finished his first two hander musical BUSKER TO BROADWAY, a rock opera.
Clement recently staged BLACKBIRD with fantastic reviews and is looking forward to the challenging and iconic role of Monk O’Neil in A STRETCH OF THE IMAGINATION. Marc, also known for his comedic and physical style of acting says ‘This will be an exciting challenge, and an amazing character to portray. I just want to do justice to the brilliant and poetic writing of Jack Hibberd.
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Solus Productions
PRODUCER