Former Mandurah actor Trevor Dhu is preparing to direct a play from multi-award-winning actor, director, writer and stand up comedian Sue Ingleton next month.
The show After You’ve Gone is a comedy set in 1946 and will take to the stage at the Old Mill Theatre on February 15.
Set in a large country town, the play follows the story of dead hero Harold who the Town Square is named after in his honour.
The town host an evening supper and gathering of World War II survivors but the event turns to turmoil when friends, both dead and alive, appear to cause retribution for a mysterious death.
Then Harold turns up alive and well.
Dhu said the play explored a number of important topics.
“The play is about four sisters, all lost in relationships,” he said.
“They have no love for their children, nor the men that have been in their lives, and are bitter and confrontational towards each other.
“The time period was difficult and that has to be re-created in the portrayals from the cast.
“The challenge is to showcase the conflict realistically, especially among the younger cast members, and highlight how these people were victims of the time.”
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Involved in the performing arts for as long as he can remember, Dhu has worked with Patch and Playhouse Theatres, Perth City Ballet and did extensive professional work with the Australian Dance Theatre in the eastern states.
He has directed, choreographed and acted in various productions at the Mandurah Performing Arts Centre including West Side Story and Jesus Christ Superstar and has also performed and directed at Harbour, Roleystone, Old Mill and Melville Theatres.
More recently, Dhu directed Last Cab to Darwin, Summer of the Seventeenth Doll, Barefoot in the Park and Spike Heels.
Dhu said he related to the script of After You’ve Gone because he was a post-war baby himself.
“I relate to the angst of women confronting parenting after the war,” he said.
“For women during the war, marriage was often based on convenience or a shortage of possibilities for real relationships with many Australian men off fighting.”
The show will play at the Old Mill Theatre from February 15 to March 2. For more information, or to purchase tickets, visit www.trybooking.com/BACAP.
