The Rowan’s Story Project brings teaching artists into schools to work with senior drama students, then gives students the chance to perform their work in a professional theatre context to invited guests. The Project facilitates the students’ re-creation of dramatic scenarios that explore young people’s experiences of the complex, messy, finely nuanced, and often challenging world of 21^st Century gender relations in Australia… how do gender assumptions work?  Why?  What is controlling behaviour? What about sexting? Who gets to decide where that image goes?

This Project supports the genuine voices of young people and the development process of a new Australian play – Rowan’s Story. Informed by the students’ work and this industry showing, nationally-awarded playwright Elaine Acworth will write Rowan’s Story, a 45-minute play for a youth audience that examines the story of a 16-year-old exploring his identity, discovering the intricacies of emotional relationships, and uncovering the meaning of the family violence he and his mother fled nine years ago.

This industry showing presents the creative scenario work undertaken by students from Yeronga and MacGregor State High Schools from February-April 2024. Elaine provided stimulus scenes and a narrative structure, and teaching artists, Zac Boulton and Jess Veurman, have proffered directorial support during weekly workshops within each school. The full cast has had only 2 days working together in SunPAC, to create this vibrant theatrical snapshot.  Assembly of Elephants is privileged to support this Project’s inception!

This project is supported by the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland.

AoE would like to thanks SunPAC for its generous support as co-presenter, and Yeronga and MacGregor State High Schools for their trust, enthusiasm and commitment.