The Mount Players held its AGM on February 14 with a huge turnout and four members received Life Memberships on the evening, two of them the first canines to be honoured with the award.  

Reg and Millie Taranto, above, who never missed a set build, working bee or social occasion put their best paws forward and stepped on to the stage to receive their trophies.  

On a more standard note, David Runnalls and Karen Hunt were humbled at receiving their honours after many years of dedicated service to the theatre.  

The Mount Players say that thanks to an abundance of nominees, all roles on the 2025 committee were filled,  ensuring the ongoing success for the Mountview Theatre. 

For over 50 years, David Williamson has been the most produced playwright in the history of Australian theatre.

Writer of iconic plays such as Don’s Party, The Club, Money and Friends, The Removalists, Emerald City…the list goes on.

He has also written numerous film scripts and TV series. Williamson’s characters are often deeply flawed but at the core of his work there is a desire for a better and more tolerant society.

Almost always, each of the characters goes on a journey through the events of the play with most growing to make positive changes in their lives. The characters in this play are no exception.

Directed by Woodend local David Runnalls, Family Values introduces us to the Collins family as they gather to celebrate their father Roger’s 70th birthday.

The retired Supreme Court Justice and his wife Sue have their plans for a quiet family gathering blown apart after unwittingly bringing together a detention centre escapee, a border force commander and three siblings all on the verge of unleashing a lifetime of simmering resentments.

Humorous, thought-provoking and, at times, deeply moving, Family Values will have audiences laughing while prompting them to consider their own beliefs and values.

With a complimentary sherry on arrival, a well-stocked bar with the best prices in the Ranges followed by a treat after the show, why wouldn’t you come to our gorgeous Mountview Theatre in Macedon to enjoy a performance.

This stellar cast will not disappoint. Family Values by David Williamson runs from opening night tonight, August 16 to September 1.

Tickets via www.themountplayers.com or call 5426 1892.

Words: Karen Hunt | Image: Karlana Santamaria

The Mount Players’ second production for 2024 opened yesterday May 10 and runs until May 26.

Based on a real event, Looped, a comedy by Matthew Lombardo, takes place in the summer of 1965 in the editing studio where an inebriated Tallulah Bankhead needed eight hours to redub or “loop”, one line of dialogue for her last movie.

Though Bankhead’s outsized personality dominates the play, the sub-story involves her battle of wills with a film editor named Danny Miller, who has been selected to work that particular sound editing session.

The playwright uses a great deal of theatrical licence, offering us a hilarious yet sympathetic guesstimation as to what may have happened in that room on that day. Fun, funny and seductive this play is sure to appeal to many.

This is director Peter Newling’s first gig with The Mount Players. Peter is held in high regard throughout the community theatre scene across Melbourne. Vicki Smith (pictured above) takes on the role of Tallulah with utter professionalism and presence and Darren Gregor grasps the role of the highly frustrated film editor with ease.

A special Mother’s Day matinee on Sunday, May 12 offers complimentary bubbles for all the mums and delicious treats at interval.

Tickets are via www.themountplayers.com or call 5426 1892 for more information.

In the past 51 years The Mount Players have never performed any of Shakespeare’s plays – but that is being quickly rectified.
President Karen Hunt said the Players would be attempting all of them in one night. Thirty-seven plays in 97 minutes with three actors. “What could possibly go wrong?”
Karen said The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) was a delightful, fast-paced romp through the bard’s work as three manic men in tights hurtle through all of Shakespeare’s plays, leaving the audience in stitches.
“The Mount Players join FizzWack Theatre to bring a show that takes those long, sometimes tedious and serious subjects, and condenses them down into a couple of hours of frivolity. If you love Shakespeare, you will love this show. If you hate Shakespeare, you will love this show.”
The performance runs from August 18 to 26. For details and bookings head to www.themountplayers.com or call 5426 1892.

By Karen Hunt

The Mount Players is incredibly excited to announce that our Youth Theatre will be back in Terms 3 and 4! We welcome Kerry Turpie and Mark Constable, two fabulous, highly-qualified teachers who will run each of the classes together for students aged from 10  – 19 on a weekly basis from 10 July. 

On the weekend of 8 & 9 July our annual One Act Play Festival finally returns and offers a weekend of short plays that are adjudicated with awards presented at the completion of the Sunday afternoon session.  Come for a session (just $15 a session) or nestle in for a cosy weekend.  Bar open and food available. Tickets only available at the door.

On the weekend of 22 & 23 July, the theatre welcomes a visiting Melbourne Company, The Good Girl Song Project, who will bring their performance of Voyage a new Australian musicalto our stage for just 2 performances.  It follows the immigration story of two women, who board a ship to NSW in April 1833. During the voyage, the two women form a strong friendship; one that must withstand the capricious whims of the Sydney colonists. For once they leave the familiar shores of their home, there is no going back. A simple set, stunning character transformations it asks audiences to reflect on their attitudes to women, migration, identity, colonisation and racism, and questions whether the attitudes of the 19th Century are still mirrored in contemporary Australia.

For full details of our Youth Theatre Program, One Act Play Festival and Voyage go to www.themountplayers.com or phone 5426 1892 for assistance.

The Mount Players’ second production for 2023 is Buried Child written by Sam Shepard. It was first presented in 1978 and won the 1979 Pulitzer Prize for drama, launching Shepard to national fame as a playwright.
The play is an intense drama set in an old farm house, in mid-century Illinois. A
macabre look at an American Midwestern family with a dark, terrible secret. Heavily
atmospheric and challenging, the play will entrance its audience with questions of
morality and its take on the disintegration of the American dream.
Although dark in many respects, it is delivered with humour and pathos. There
is hope however, as the final moments of the play suggest salvation with a surprise
ending.
With a superb cast, brilliant set and one hell of a script, the audience will be taken
on an emotional journey under the experienced eye of director, Robert Wallace. This
is The Mount Players’ 2023 Victorian Drama League entry.
The season runs from tomorrow, Friday, May 12 to Sunday, May 28 with just nine performances. Bookings: www.themountplayers.com or 5426 1892.