META
Inspired by Kafka’s short story Metamorphosis, META re-imagines the given circumstances of Kafka’s world, drawing on his central characters but placing them in a contemporary nightmare where the tragic fate of the ‘other’ demands attention. Performed with minimal dialogue, META presents three tightly woven episodes of Gregor’s world, highlighting the subtle transformation of his family as they struggle to accept the sudden change that is imposed upon them.
META premiered at the Malthouse Theatre Helium season 2014.
Creative Team
Conceived by: Samara Hersch
Inspired by: Franz Kafka’s short story The Metamorphosis
Directed by: Samara Hersch
Produced by: Bek Berger
Set and Costume by: Romanie Harper
Lighting Design by: Amelia Lever-Davidson
Sound Design by: James Paul
Performed and co-devised by: Josh Ferenbach John Flaus, Liz Jones, Aaron Orzech and Mary Helen Sassman
Dramaturg: David Woods
Special thanks to other collaborators Karen Sibbing, Syd Brisbane, Emma Hall, Marco Cher-Gibard, Susie Dee and Claudio Tocco
Supported by: The Australia Council for the Arts, Arts Victoria, Besen Family Foundation and La Mama Explorations.
“Rather than merely aspiring to the state of cinema, Hersch places us inside the frame. Only as observers, true, but the experience is memorable and satisfying.”
Chris Boyd, The Australian
“Spare, felt, smart, grotesquely funny. And completely avoids Kafkaesque cliche.”
Alison Croggon
“A satisfying, but surprising, visual feast.”
★★★★ Mark Brandi, Arts Hub
“Meta is marvellously evocative—and perhaps the most sophisticated work of the 2014 Helium season.”
Rebecca Harkins-Cross, The Age
European Classics Book Club: The Metamorphosis
Radio National
