JOLLY: A PLAY ABOUT PYRATES
Condemned! For high seas pyracy! Friends of no nation! Guilty of feral crymes against the crowne! Three anarchic pyrates in their final hours.
Locked in a brig and sailing to certain death, three raucous pyrates have their fellowship hanging by a thread. When a rebellious crew member is thrown into their cell they see an opportunity to escape.
Will they unite behind this common goal, or fall divided?
Pirates have been mythologised throughout the centuries for their brutal violence, but the surprisingly progressive aspects of their lifestyle are often forgotten. While British and Spanish empires committed atrocities in the ‘new world’, these friends of no nation were championing a society of democracy,
equality, and freedom.
In a time of rising populism, when social divisions are becoming ever more entrenched and the legacy of empire looms, ‘Jolly’ channels the ‘long gone’ era of pirates to satirise our modern political landscape. With a smirk and a bottle of rum, this play suggests that perhaps those vagabonds of the salty seas, with their radical resistance to imperial expansion, aren’t as far off in history as we think.
With shaky candle-lit lighting, rousing sea shanties, and irreverent humour, ‘Jolly’ explores the myth, reality and politics of pirates by combining historical sources and archival research with fiction.
Written and Directed by Nemi Colette & Chad Nickson
Cast: To Be Announced
Running time: Approx 60 minutes
Ages Guidance: Ages 15 and above
Contains bad language, adult themes, stage violence and references to slavery.
