LOVELY UGLY

“Kings Cross is theatre,” says Tahli Corin.

The writer/performer turned dramaturg, along with six writers, has created Lovely Ugly, a multi-venue immersive presentation as part of Griffin Theatre’s New Festival of Writing.

“It’s going to be unexpected and delightfully spontaneous,” she says. The venture means bums come off seats and head out the door, with punters passing through three iconic Kings Cross buildings: the SBW Stables Theatre, the Altamont Hotel and the Kings Cross Hotel.

The one-night-only performance is based on the bizarre and suspicious story of Joyce Germain who in 2006 was found dead in her Darlinghurst apartment surrounded by random objects, plus a slew of colourful characters including the elusive Kiwi John and an S&M neighbour who verbally abused police.

Writer Duncan Graham describes the show as a rambling and hilarious mystery. “We’re trying to open up a view of the Cross and its many different strands be they violent, tender or debaucherous,” he explains.

So where’s the ‘lovely’ in Germain’s death? “It’s a reflection about how even the most isolated life has impact and value and should be celebrated,” Corin adds. Well, that really is quite lovely.

Jun 13, SBW Stables Theatre (meeting point), 10 Nimrod Street, Kings Cross, $20, 9361 3817, griffintheatre.com.au