She was a ten foot high Indian Elephant and was one of the biggest attractions at Coney Island’s Luna Park. She was used and cruelly abused and, in the end, she was deemed a killer and condemned to death. They wanted to hang her. They tried to poison her and then, in front of 1500 witnesses, she was electrocuted and killed.
Based on true events - from July 1 to 11 2010, Here Theatre and fortyfivedownstairs proudly present the story of TOPSY, by Award-Winning writer Kit Lazaroo.
The Play:
Three Australian tourists arrive on Coney Island in the early 20th Century, determined to rescue Topsy, the notorious rogue elephant condemned to die in an electrical experiment devised by Thomas Edison. Vasco, the elephant’s keeper, fleeces them of their savings. While they wait in a seedy hotel their desires, vanities and fears implode in the weird world of the Edwardian funfair.
Brought to you by award-winning Here Theatre, TOPSY employs comedy, song, fable and whimsy, to tell a disturbing tale of human cruelty.
The Writer:
Kit Lazaroo is a well-known and lauded Melbourne writer. She has won the RE Ross Playwright’s Award twice, and the 2006 Wal Cherry Award.
Credits include: Hospital of the Lost Coin/ The Vanishing Box (nominated for 2003 Green Room Awards), True Adventures of a Soul Lost at Sea (recipient of a 2004 RE Ross Award, nominated for Green Room Awards), Letters from Animals (recipient of a 2006 RE Ross Award, Shortlisted for the Max Afford Memorial Prize), and Asylum which was the 2006 Wal Cherry Play of the Year and played to sell-out seasons at La Mama in 2007 and 2008. Asylum was selected for the 2008 VCE Playlist, published by Currency Press and was shortlisted for the Queensland and Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards.
The Team:
TOPSY brings together a team of experienced and Award-Winning members of the Melbourne arts industry.
Directed by Jane Woollard (The Hammer of Devotion, The Vanishing Box, Aelfgyva, The Time is not yet Ripe, True Adventures of a Soul Lost at Sea, Asylum, Letters from Animals, Prophet and Loss), the production also features the work of lighting designer Bronwyn Pringle (Alias Grace, Letters from Animals, The Time is not yet Ripe, Prophet and Loss), designer Amanda Johnson (True Adventures, The Time is not yet Ripe, Letters from Animals, Asylum, Prophet and Loss), and music by Gavin Gray (Tyrnaround, Batacuda, Oxo Cubans, Beachy Boys)
Outstanding Melbourne performers Georgina Capper, Colin James, Carole Patullo and Alex Pinder will bring this intense poetic allegory to life.
Footage still exists today of Topsy's electrocution:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RkBU3aYsf0Q
(Please be warned - this may offend some viewers)
Catch TOPSY at fortyfivedownstairs (45 Flinders Lane, Melbourne City) from July 1 - 11 (Preview June 30). For bookings and more information, phone (03) 9662 9966 or check out www.fortyfivedownstairs.com