THE HORSE’S MOUTH

Coming to the Bondi Pavilion is this autobiographical performance festival. It features a diverse collection of short, one-act plays, all of which are based on personal stories.

One of the featured acts is Melbourne-based writer and performer Bron Batten’s Sweet Child of Mine.

“It’s a show I do with my parents about what I do for a living… performance and contemporary art,” Batten says.

While other artists often bring their parents along to their shows to watch, Batten has taken this one step further. After seeing her parents read a piece of text to camera, so impressed was Batten in the way they engaged with the text that she decided to cast them in a much larger role alongside her in the show.

Prior to the show, Batten says that she had excluded her parents from parts of her life.

“They were confused and rather nonplussed about what I did for a living,” she says, but now, after touring together, they are much more understanding of her artistic lifestyle.

Audiences will relate to the universal themes of seeking parental approval and acceptance. (VP)

Dec 3-14, Bondi Pavilion Theatre, 1 Queen Elizabeth Dr, Bondi Beach, $15-30, 9356 0147, rocksurfers.org/horsesmouth

BY VANESSA POWELL