TO BE FRANK to Melbourne Fringe

“ABSURDLY FUNNY, EXCRUCIATINGLY HUMAN”

“HOCKEY’S EMBODIMENT OF THE MONSTER IS SENSATIONAL”

TO BE FRANK is a hilariously horrifying comedy about a monster thrust into creation and trying its best to discover why. This terrifyingly funny solo show is traveling from Aotearoa to Australia for the Melbourne Fringe Festival this October!

After successful seasons in the Auckland, Whangārei and NZ Fringe and most recently at Basement Theatre, Michael Hockey brings this debut solo performance to the stage in this eerie comedy that follows the journey of the creature ‘Frank’ from creation, to chaos, to composure. All alongside an electrifying live guitar soundtrack by musician Stenn Francis-Deare and expert direction from Logan Cole. A modern reimagining: blending clown, physical comedy and horror. This is a raucously fun, delightfully thrilling and incredibly human solo show. 

We are now asking for your help to continue the life of the show!

In previous seasons TO BE FRANK has earned the “Whangārei Fringe Tour Ready Award” and the “Memorable Marketing Award” from NZ Fringe as well as five other award nominations, including the “Best New Work” award and “Melbourne Fringe Tour Ready” award.

Created and performed by Michael Hockey, TO BE FRANK is a collaborative effort with some of NZ’s most dynamic and exciting emerging theatrical artists. Hockey’s playful, skillful and embodied presentation of the famous monster is something to behold, engrossing audiences in a new way every night. “From the moment Frank (Michael Hockey) erupts onto stage, the audience is utterly captivated”. Stenn Francis-Deare accompanies Frank onstage to create a masterful, live music soundtrack and soundplay has been described as “an eloquent interplay of sound and action that is one of the show’s greatest strengths”. Logan Cole draws on his depth of theatrical experience (Red Leap, ATC) and training under the world’s greatest clown, Phillipe Gaulier, in his directorial debut. Our tight creative team is bursting with talent and collaborative skills and we are poised and ready for the next step in our artistic careers that is an international tour!

MELBOURNE FRINGE 

TO BE FRANK will be playing this year at the Fringe Festival Hub held at the Victorian Trades Hall. A prestigious spot! Our dates are from the 11-16 of October. This is our show’s first journey overseas and we are choosing Melbourne Fringe Festival as it is a well-established and supportive festival that attracts a diverse and engaged audience. This festival has a proven track record of showcasing innovative and boundary-pushing work, which makes it the perfect platform for our wild show, TO BE FRANK.

WHY WE NEED A BOOST

How you will be helpful:

While we are fortunate to have some profit from previous season’s awards contributions there are many other financial challenges we have to overcome to bring our wonderful show to Australian shores. This is where Boosted comes in! Every contribution, no matter how big or small makes a massive difference in helping us pay for these crucial expenses associated with independent theatre. 

Your donation will go towards:

• Flights and accommodation for our team
• Marketing our show
• Rehearsal space
• Artist Fees

Why this tour is so special: 

Our team loves what we do, we have already dedicated so much heart and so many hours into this work. We care so deeply about this show, and about the power of live theatre as a modern expression of art. The journey of this show has meant so much to us so far and this next big step, an international tour, fills us with excitement. This tour is not just about bringing our beautiful show to new audiences but it is about creating sustainable, long term careers for us as theatrical artists. With your support we’ll be able to forge new bonds with other artists and communities and put NZ original theatre on show with the rest of the world in our Melbourne Fringe Tour. We believe in Frank, we hope you do too.

With so much love and so many thanks from Michael, Stenn and Logan 💚

Melbourne Fringe tickets on sale soon!

11 - 16 October, Festival Hub, Trades Hall, Melbourne/Naarm

Read more about our show here: 

www.linktr.ee/michaelhockey