Fierce

Melbourne isn’t anything if it’s not AFL mad. Fierce is a play written by Jane Thompson, which is an ode to the drama that is AFL, masculine culture and the prevailing idea of ‘Australian-ness’, framed through the eyes of Suzie Flack — the first-ever female footballer to play professionally with the blokes. Milk Bar Mag was lucky enough to reach Thompson at half time and went through the final drill of life, theatre and why you should see Fierce.

Thanks for getting in touch, Jane. Your CV is quite extensive – actor, playwright, director, costume designer – what is it about theatre that you are so passionate about?

Its live-ness. That the audience is present with the performers in real time, though the action may not take place in real time. But everyone is there together experiencing this live thing that changes every night and is experienced in vastly different ways by people who may or may not share similarities themselves. Its potential to be unpredictable via performers and audience is what I love about it.     

What do you think independent theatre has to offer compared to the large-scale epic affair that is commercial theatre?

 Firstly, I don’t think these things are mutually exclusive. In that independent theatre is never large-scale or epic, or that commercial theatre is never small or intimate. But obviously there’s more money in commercial theatre that allows it to have all the bells and whistles, while indie theatre scrapes by most of the time, so that large-scale and epic looks and sounds a bit different in indie theatre than it does in commercial theatre. And that’s one of the positives I think: more often than not indie theatre has to improvise and find viable solutions, which is when artists can get really creative because they need to. Also, indie theatre is not beholden to venues and so you can produce site-specific works. And plays and performances that work best in small and intimate spaces can be produced IN small and intimate spaces without the pressure of having to fill 500+ seat theatres because of budgets.    

Your new show, Fierce, asks the question, what would happen if a woman was good enough to compete against men. Why do you think this story is important to tell?

I wrote this play in response to another quite prominent play set in men’s professional football, produced here in Melbourne in 2014. That play tried to deal with the issues surrounding sexual assault, female fandom and professional footballers. Fair to say I didn’t think it was very successful. I then didn’t want to respond by writing another play with the same themes albeit with what would be a very different approach … 

So I don’t even know if this is an important story to tell, but rather my want to come up with a premise that was explosive enough to gather potential scenes in the wreckage, for me to then work into some kind of narrative. For me, this is a combination of what’s imaginable and the reality of our culture. In sports where speed, strength, agility and power are predominant, no female has competed regularly against men at the highest level. But in the theatre, why not? It’s a work of fiction. I can make up what I want. This doesn’t mean she has an easy time—far from it—because of the culture.    

Suzie Flack is the central character – what do you admire about her?

I think her one-eyed focus is a blessing and curse. She’s so steely. But she holds things inside that she shouldn’t and they start to calcify, I think. So I admire her drive. And her strength and bravado. But she’s in real danger of hurting herself because she won’t let herself feel all the things that she could in a full life.    

Were there any challenges in putting the show together?

I think you could ask most indie theatre makers and get the same answer: YES.

But everyone’s so super professional and great at their job that everything’s nearly perfect now, so. Phew.  

Do you think the masculine culture around AFL is changing with the inclusion of AFLW?

Sometimes I think it is, very much. Then other days I think, nah, they can’t even get proper lights for the women to play under at night. I think after the good-news success story of last year’s inaugural AFLW comp, this year the gloss has worn off a bit for the AFL. And when I say AFL, I mean AFL House, the decision-makers. I am certainly not talking about the players or the games or coaching staff: the players are incredible, they ARE the competition. And on their backs, and those supporting them at the clubs, AFLW is a huge success. I just think perhaps the people making the decisions at the top are either not sure how big this thing is, or has the potential to be, or they do know and don’t care as much as they should.      

Could you give our readers a quick preview of what to expect when they see your show? And why should they come see Fierce?

Fierce will have definite appeal to those interested in the game, but there’s also something in it that speaks to people who aren’t. There are laughs, tears, weight-room dancing and Justin Bieber.

For me it’s important that a play works as live theatre first and foremost. This is not an op-ed. It’s not a bunch of talking heads lecturing the converted. It’s live performance. It also has to mean something to me. It needs to punch me in the guts. I hope Fierce does that.

Fierce 
Theatre Works, 14 Acland Street, St Kilda
Wednesday, 28 March to Sunday, 8 April 2018
theatreworks.org.au/fierce.html