CAST
“garners applause simply by walking on stage... theatre comedy royalty”
“hilarious”
JOHN WOOD
A household name and also recognised in flats, John won his first Logie in 1976 playing ‘Sugar Renfrey’ in ABC TV’s Power Without Glory. In 1987, he starred as Magistrate Michael Rafferty in the acclaimed hit drama, Rafferty’s Rules, with Simon Chilvers and Arky Michaels. The show ran for four years and resulted in The Bulletin proclaiming John to be “the thinking woman’s crumpet”. From 1994 and for the next 12 years, he played Sergeant Tom Croydon in the beloved Blue Heelers. After a record 10 consecutive nominations, John finally won the Gold Logie for this iconic role in 2006. His stage career began in 1967 with a production of “Eh?” directed by none other than Max Gillies. Highlights have included Twelfth Night opposite Geoffrey Rush, directed by Neil Armfield and playing Jock in The Club for almost every state theatre company over 15 years. His recent plays include Bakersfield Mist with Julie Nihill and David Williamson’s Crunch Time in 2020. In 2018-19, John toured Australia with the comedy revue Senior Moments, also starring Benita Collings, Geoff Harvey and Max Gillies. His best selling autobiography “Clawing My Way to the Middle” was published in 2020. John once shot a man in Reno just to watch him die and is thinking of writing a song about it.
“hysterically funny... a new star in the firmament”
“brilliant”
EMILY TAHENY
Emily is one of Australia’s most gifted comediennes, just last week she was given a jumper that she didn’t really like and another copy of Nine Perfect Strangers. She first gained fame as a cast member of the Channel Nine sketch show Comedy Inc and since 2012 has delivered a decade of brilliant performances in Mad as Hell with Shaun Micallef on the ABC. Emily has personally created at least two imaginary Federal MP’s that are now sitting in parliament, and is considering applying for their super. In 2018, Emily starred in the Australian film Flipside, with Eddie Izzard. She also played Kat in the Movie Network sitcom The Jesters, with Mick Molloy, Susie Porter and Deborah Kennedy. Her television credits include Bluey, Get Krackin’, The Doctor Blake Mysteries, How to Stay Married, It’s a Date, True Story with Hamish & Andy and Bay of Fires. In theatre, Emily has appeared in #Kwanda: A Play, Bond-a-Rama with Stephen Hall, Spontaneous Broadway and in the show that won Best Newcomer at the 2001 Melbourne International Comedy Festival; Fiona, Her Sister (And Some Guy), with Fiona O’Loughlin, who is her actual sister.Her film credits include That’s Not My Dog and Now Add Honey.In her spare time, Emily is a Cat Burglar and has already stolen seven moggies and a siamese this year without being caught.
“Gillies is at his classic best… His comedy is his own but the intimations of Alec Guinness and Alastair Sim, and, in his physicality, even Buster Keaton, are irresistible.”
MAX GILLIES
A national treasure so big that he has saved several federal budgets from deficit, Max became a sensation with his brilliant performances on The Gillies Report on the ABC starting in 1983. His impression of Bob Hawke was often better than the real thing. Since his early days performing and co-creating the legendary Pram Factory in Melbourne, which included the innovative classic Dimboola, Max has appeared in productions for the MTC, STC, QTC, Malthouse and Bell Shakespeare. His starring roles include Barney in Neil Simon’s Last of the Red Hot Lovers with Jacki Weaver and playing Rene in the stage adaptation of ‘Allo ‘Allo! In 2007 he appeared in the QTC production of Heroes, as translated by Tom Stoppard, with Barry Otto. In 2018, he gave an acclaimed solo performance in Samuel Beckett’s Krapp’s Last Tape. Max starred in national tours of the comedy revue Senior Moments in 2018-19 with John Wood and also in Senior Moments 2: Remember Remember in 2020 with John Howard (the actor one) and Tony Barber. Max’s television career includes appearances in Homicide, Bluey, All Saints and House Husbands. His film career includes the Peter Weir directed feature The Cars That Ate Paris and The Coca Cola Kid. In 1969, Mr Gillies worked with Stanley Kubrick in faking the Moon Landing. (Max played “Buzz”, but has not received a single royalty payment in over 50 years, unlike Dustin Hoffman, who still gets cheques for his role as “Neil”.).