A Wilde night at the theatre

Shades of Oscar Wilde colour The Narcissist – the new world premiere work of award-winning playwright and UQ lecturer Stephen Carleton.

La Boite Theatre Company’s first production for 2007, the show lifts the lid on the superficial side of Brisbane’s inner suburbs, following title character Xavier as he schemes his way through life and love.

Writing the black comedy was a change of pace for Carleton, whose gothic drama Constance Drinkwater and the Final days of Somerset was workshopped in New York last month after successful runs in Brisbane and Sydney.

“It was hugely enjoyable creating a character like Xavier, and indeed all of the other diabolical self-obsessed characters,” Carleton said.

“It's like giving yourself permission to explore the world through the eyes of people who have no internal censors or scruples.”

On top of his writing and directing work, the PhD student teaches performance and postcolonial theatre as part of the University’s drama program and chairs Playlab, a state body that encourages new Australian playwrights.

“The avenues for professional production of new Australian work - Australian stories, idiom, language, cultural perspectives, political critique - are drying up,” he said.

“It’s vitally important we applaud and support the companies who are willing to give Australian voices a chance.”

Although The Narcissist examines the darker side of human nature, Carleton said first and foremost the show was created to be an entertaining piece of theatre.

“Inevitably, a study in superficiality, greed and bad behaviour ends up becoming kind of naughty itself.

“That's part of the joy of the piece, so the first thing I hope audiences get out of it is a good laugh, and the enjoyment of some fairly stinging social satire.”

The Narcissist opens at the Roundhouse Theatre at Kelvin Grove on March 1.

Media: Stephen Carleton (07 3366 8739 s.carleton@uq.edu.au) or Cameron Pegg at UQ Communications (07 3365 2049, c.pegg@uq.edu.au).