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BY GITA BEZARD

Bad things happen to girls who go out after dark.

Gita Bezard's (The Last Great Hunt) 'Girl Shut Your Mouth' is an exciting dark comedy about ordinary living under extraordinary circumstances.

When the world you know has been ripped away, what lengths will you go to just to survive?

Katie, Grace, Mia and Darcy are your average young girls. They love boys and dresses and the idea of a feminist future.

Everything about them is normal.

Except their friends die on a monthly basis. Except their lives are in danger if they go out after sunset.

Except they aren't really your average young girls at all.

When Katie is shot in yet another attack on their freedoms, her bullet quickly becomes her ticket out and over to a place rumoured to be free of prejudices, rules and restrictions.

But is anywhere really that perfect? And how can her friends go too?

A poignant new Australian work that comments on the crisis' facing refugees through the lense of young, feisty women ready to take their futures in their own hands.

This production returns to Sydney after a critically acclaimed run at the Adelaide Fringe Festival in 2020 and marks its Sydney Premiere.

"Brilliant Piece of Theatre" - The Advertiser - 5 Star Review

"What happens next is unexpected, shocking and played with extreme precision by this excellent cast of young actors" - The Advertiser

"Girl Shut Your Mouth is at the top of feminist theatre to watch" - Weekend Notes - 5 Star Review

"This play and its themes will create an important conversation piece for months to come" - Upside News - 4.5 Star Review

See all our reviews below

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ANTONIA KORN

Antonia is a Sydney-based Theatre and Screen actor who is currently studying Biomedical Engineering at the University of Technology, Sydney, and has over ten years of dance and acting training. For the past two years, Antonia has performed at multiple Revues for her university, including Women’s Revue, which headed to the Sydney Comedy Festival this year after an extremely successful run. Passionate about female-driven theatre, Antonia is looking forward to bringing Girl Shut Your Mouth to an Sydney audience, and is excited to be working on an Australian play that showcases the best of what this country has to offer.

KAYLEE ASHTON

Kaylee has recently graduated from University of Wollongong with a Bachelor of Creative Arts (Theatre) in 2020, balancing her love for both acting and technical aspects of theatre. After performing for the majority of her life, Kaylee has found a passion in the technical aspects of the theatre scene including, stage managing, directing, choreographing, sound and lighting design, and costume design. Kaylee has had the pleasure of exploring a diverse range of roles the last couple of years, including the costume co-ordinator for Rising Arts Productions’ sold out season of ‘Heathers: The Musical’; stage manager for Living Room Theatre’s ‘The Foul of the Air’ (showing March 2021); and production co-ordinator of multiple shows throughout Sydney.

Kaylee is honoured to be working with Theatre Travels again for their NO : INTERMISSION Festival, after their successful Adelaide Fringe Season in 2020.

ALEX GONZALEZ

Alex is beyond excited to be joining this talented cast and to be able to perform live in a theatre once again! Having graduated from Brent Street with a Diploma in Music Theatre last year, Alex is passionate about theatre and performing. Before lockdown, Alex was featured in 1984: The Musical as Big Brother/Ensemble at the New Theatre. Her other theatre credits include Damn Yankees, The Drowsy Chaperone, Inner West Side: The Musical, and Popstars: The 90s Musical. Alex has also branched out into film this year, and has enjoyed taking part in both short and feature films in 2020. After a year of great uncertainty with very few sources of live entertainment, Alex is looking forward to taking part in the magic of theatre once again!

KOBI TAYLOR-FORDER

Kobi is a Sydney based actor and theatre maker, having completed her BA in performance from the University of Wollongong in 2017. Her UOW credits include Birdland (dir. Tim Maddock), Still Angela (dir. Linda Luke), F**K This Love (dir. Deborah Pollard), and Nothing (dir. Mark Rogers).

Since graduating, Kobi has completed study at Screenwise Australia. She currently works as a production assistant for Partners in Crimes Productions, and is participating in an official mentorship program with screen actor/director Rhondda Findleton. Her recent credits include Gom Jabbar's Monument (Sydney Fringe 2018), touring with Theatre Travels to the Adelaide Fringe for Girl Shut Your Mouth (2020), and Return of Kings (Old 505 2020).

GITA BEZARD: PLAYWRIGHT

GITA BEZARD is a playwright, director, performer and theatre maker, living between Melbourne and Perth.

In 2016 she was nominated for The Victorian Premier’s Award for her play Girl Shut Your Mouth, which premiered at Black Swan State Theatre Company. She has twice won the Black Swan Emerging Writers Award. She has been commissioned in 2017 by Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, in 2019 and 2015 by Curtin University and in 2013 by Perth Theatre Company to adapt two short plays by Eugene Ionesco. In 2012 she received a DCA Fellowship to do professional development in the UK and USA.

For The Last Great Hunt: Perpetual Wake, Le Nor (Perth Festival), Stay With Us, Improvement Club, The Talk, The Advisors, Price Tag, Monroe and Associates, All That Glitters, Minnie and Mona Play Dead.

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CARLY FISHER: DIRECTOR

Carly is the founder and Artistic Director of Theatre Travels. As a producer, Carly is passionate about bringing debut works to stages in new markets and seeks new writers and performances ready to make their Sydney, Australian and even World premieres. Carly also prioritises telling the stories of real, empowered women in Theatre Travels productions.

Most recently, Carly directed and produced Girl Shut Your Mouth by Gita Bezard at the 2020 Adelaide Fringe Festival to 5 Star Reviews and Critical Acclaim. Carly also produced Bleach by Dan Ireland Reeves at the Adelaide Fringe.

Though Covid halted the rest of Theatre Travels’ 2020 productions, Carly is proud to be returning to theatre in 2021 with the second NO: INTERMISSION festival and four wonderfully diverse works each making their Sydney and Australian premieres. Carly is the producer for the festival and will also direct In Their Footsteps by Ashley Adelman and Infinite Variety Productions, and the return season of Girl Shut Your Mouth.

Carly is also extremely proud to be producing 5 Lesbians Eating a Quiche by Andrew Hobgood and Evan Linder as a Mardi Gras Registered Event this February.

In 2019, Carly produced and co-curated the inaugural NO : INTERMISSION festival, Sydney’s new one-act play festival designed to create opportunities for emerging Artists across the disciplines within the Theatre industry. For the festival, Carly directed Final Placement by Ara Watson, Falling Skies by Brayden Frascone and co-directed Albumen by Mishka Lavigne.

Carly produced and co-directed Moises. Kaufman and the Tectonic Theatre Companies’ The Laramie Project and The Laramie Project:10 Years Later for Theatre Travels at The Seymour Centre in Sydney.

In June of 2019, Carly was selected to be part of the Broadway Evolved Educators Stream for an intensive course in New York City.

As Assistant Director and Company Manager, Carly worked on Carmen: Live or Dead at the Hayes Theatre in Sydney in April 2018. She also worked as Production Assistant on Michael Seider's Presents' Alice in Wonderland as part of Sydney Festival. Carly diversified her experience in the industry by holding secondments with leading Arts companies including the Gordon Frost Organisation - working on The Wizard of Oz, Ian Phipps Publicity and ACMN.

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For Carly’s full bio and credit list, visit www.theatretravels.org/about