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'Make the most of what you have. Sometimes, it's later than you think.'

Inspired by Dead's Poet Society, Iresha Herath and Daniel Goodfellow take the lives of five Year 11 private school boys, add a new kid on the block with a secret, mix in some peer pressure, bullying, alcohol, imminent change, homosexuality, and a twisted denouement of suicide, to achieve 9Minds' return production of Angels With Dirty Faces.

'Dishonour. Anarchy. Mediocrity. This is Year 11', the five boys shout when the bell rings for first class. In the first Act, one becomes engrossed in the web of intricacy of this Chilton 'clique' as we are exposed to each boy's personalities and learn of their contribution to the group dynamic. Toby ('Gallagher') has clean cut blonde hair and blue eyes, is studious, ambitious, somewhat anxious, and is the editor of The Telegraph, the school newspaper, although his mother is disapproving. Alex ('Hewitt') has dishevelled frizzy red hair, is angry, a bully and possesses a sharp, unrelenting tongue. Johnno is tall, has brown hair, is quietly ambitious, and is sentimental when it comes to 'the boys'. Nick is the tallest, has brown hair, is appearance conscious and is incredibly insecure, but would not admit it. Aran ('Malouf') is also clean cut with longer hair, captain of the sport's team, of Lebanese nationality (hence Alex's nickname 'Terrorist') and the lady's man. And then we have Jake, who comes to Chilton from Griffin in Sydney, is also a bit nerdy, shy, introspective and who has a secret.

It becomes quickly evident that each boy has their own agenda for the school year and differs markedly in their reaction to change. Johnno and Nick provide sprinkles of humour and memorable 'one-liners' alongside which Toby's dream of becoming a journalist is shattered by his mother as he yearns to be closer to his father. On the other hand, Alex feels threatened by Jake and becomes obsessed with uncovering the circumstances of Jake's departure from Griffin, to the detriment of his other relationships, calling Jake a 'faggot' and a 'freak'. The rattle of Toby's pills from his blazer pocket resonates. 

The boys are initially frustrated by the fact that the 'Chilton tradition' of travelling to Portsea for a weekend is not the same this year: new boy Jake is in attendance at Toby's behest, and Johnno's attractive older sister Steph causes a stir as chaperone. As the boys imbibe more alcohol, and the conversations become deeper and more meaningful, like a game of tennis, the secrets unfold with devastating consequences. Enter Honour, Reality and Maturity for the five remaining boys.

The play is relevant to a young audience and educational to an older one. The authenticity of the language is achieved effortlessly by the boys played by Hagan Matthews (Jake), Andre de Vanny (Toby), Ben Schmideg (Alex), Deniz Akdeniz (Aran), Nicholas O'Brien (Nick), Adam Lee (Johnno) who provide a genuine portrayal of their characters. The story is engrossing, as it is not entirely obvious which of the characters is the most vulnerable to suicide. The stage setting is minimal, but this is not disappointing as the actors take carriage of the story with particularly strong performances by central characters, Ben Schmideg (Alex) and Andre de Vanny (Toby).

9Minds presents
ANGELS WITH DIRTY FACES
by Iresha Herath, Rachel Fitzpatrick, Morgan Dowsett and cast

Venue: Arts Centre, Fairfax Studio
Dates: 21 Feb ­ 25 Feb@ 8pm, Sat 24th @ 2pm, Sun 25th @ 5pm
Tickets: $23.50 to $46.50 Full
Bookings: Ticketmaster 1300 136 166 or www.ticketmaster.com.au

This review also appears on >>Australian Stage Online.

Written by Iresha Herath in collaboration with director Daniel Goodfellow and a cast of teenage males fast approaching adulthood, Angels With Dirty Faces explores the issues facing young Australian men, issues often overlooked by society. BlackBox, the Arts Centre. Today-tomorrow 1pm, tonight 8pm, tomorrow 5pm. $30/$35. Ticketmaster 1300 136 166.

SIX teenage boys. A party in Portsea. Alcohol. Drugs. Peer pressure. Shattering consequences.

As Schoolies Week looms, a play is opening that grapples with the darker issues students face in their final years of school.

Angels with Dirty Faces director Daniel Goodfellow says six Year 11 private-school students are taken out of the school environment, and alcohol and drugs are thrown into the mix. "The pressure cooker can explode, and does, shattering a lot of personal relationships, triggering a chain of events that leads to a suicide," he says. An elite private-school setting was chosen for many reasons.

"It's all about the irony," Goodfellow says. "These guys appear to have the world at their fingertips when in actual fact they are going through exactly the same types of pressures and stresses that every other young person faces."

The play grew from concerns playwright Iresha Herath had about young people feeling isolated, and the consequences.

Goodfellow, 23, whose background is in musical theatre, says this is the first time he's been involved in creating a new work.

The play explores sexuality, ethnicity, and parental and school pressure. The effect of these pressures in some cases is suicide. Youth suicide rates are higher in Australia than in many other developed countries.

However, the play is not all gloom and doom -- and it ends with hope. Goodfellow says audiences will take away with them the message "that life is bigger than the final couple of years of high school, and life is bigger than their immediate circle of friends, and life is too short not to be true to what you really want to do."

Angels with Dirty Faces, tomorrow-Sunday, Blackbox, Victorian Arts Centre. Ticketmaster7: 1300 136 166

Written by Iresha Herath in collaboration with director Daniel Goodfellow and a cast of teenage males fast approaching adulthood, Angels With Dirty Faces explores the issues facing young Australian men, issues often overlooked by society. BlackBox, the Arts Centre. Today-tomorrow 1pm, tonight 8pm, tomorrow 5pm. $30/$35. Ticketmaster 1300 136 166.

SHE may be a lawyer in her 30s, but Iresha Herath has spent seven months thinking like a teenage boy - and sex and video games are not the only things that have been on her mind. Herath is the co-writer of Angels With Dirty Faces, a new play that explores the pressures of late adolescence for six Melbourne schoolboys.

Inspired by the film Dead Poets' Society, it is the first production for theatre company 9minds. Seeking the authentic young male voice, Herath and co-writer Rachel Fitzpatrick cast their teen actors before they started writing, and worked with them at the Malthouse Theatre to get a feel for their language and concerns.

"We wanted it to be like eavesdropping on people's conversations," Herath says. She found that young men often express affection via insults, being a "girl" is one of the worst things possible and swearing is the norm.

"The language used in Angels is the vernacular of teenage boys. So strong, coarse language is an understatement," she says.

Fitzpatrick and Herath had been friends for several years before they wrote Angels With Dirty Faces. "To do this with a friend is risky, but we trust each other. We accept each other's criticism and respect the other's opinions," she says.

The pair were aware that the potency of teen angst was rarely taken seriously by adults. But for many teens this is an area of concern.

The isolation and alienation that is involved with growing up can be
all-consuming. This can lead to horrific consequences, if it all becomes too much. "Often darker youth issues, family pressure, peer bullying and suicide are put in the too-hard basket," director Daniel Goodfellow says. "But how long can we avoid them? These issues are real, they are current. As a community we need to acknowledge and respond to them."

An experienced actor, Goodfellow is now making his debut as a director. Working with teenage boys has turned him into a student teacher - an alter ego he has dubbed Mr Grumpy.

Angels With Dirty Faces is, Goodfellow says, for anyone who is able identify with the trials of late adolescence. It would be especially appreciated by recent school-leavers and those who are about to finish Year 12.

"At this time of year with pressures mounting on secondary students, the play is very relevant," he says.

Actor Talk

Something about Aran...

• Bob Morley's first professional production was Angels with Dirty Faces (2005), where he played the role of Aran Dias. He was discovered in the play by Mullinars Casting and won a 3 year role as Drew Curtis on the Seven Network drama series Home and Away.
• Deniz Akdeniz' first professional production was Angels with Dirty Faces (2007), where he also played the role of Aran Dias. Like Bob, he was discovered in the play by Mullinars Casting, and has recently won a role in a new Disney production.

Young designers successfully collaborate again!

ALIA Production News, February 2007

Designer Andrew Bellchambers and Lighting Designer Scott Allan, have once again collaborated to bring a new Australian play to life at the Victorian Arts Centre. 9minds is an emerging theatre company with a focus on delivering new work. Scott and Andrew first worked together for the company's production of Blackrock, presented at the Gasworks Theatre last year and have just open their new show Angels with Dirty Faces at the Fairfax Studio this week. The pair have delivered a minimalist setting that dose not fail to contribute to the impact of the show's strong themes.

sallanld.com

andrewbellchambers.com