THE TABLE OF KNOWLEDGE

Exposed sexual obsessions, envelopes full of cash, and a group of powerful men who regularly met at a kebab shop’s plastic table known as, ‘the table of knowledge’ are some of the sordid details of the Wollongong City Council Crisis. Helpmann Award-winning theatre company, Version 1.0, who are based in Eveleigh’s CarriageWorks, has created a play that is based on the events that took place from 2004 to 2008. I spoke with David Williams, Version 1.0’s CEO and one of the performers/devisers of the show. “There’s an accusation that political theatre work is quite didactic and tells people how to think,” he says.  “The advantage of working in a group is you can tease out the complex and contradictory issues. We know the work will generate conversation with an audience if it makes us argue between ourselves.” The play has been in the works since 2004 and Williams aims to show all aspects of the scandal. “Most people just know about a planning officer who slept with powerful men, but the stories are much more complex than that. It’s hilarious, sexy, and surprising. There’s a lot of humour and some of the stories and encounters are just too crazy to make up.” It sounds like it’s worth making the trip down south for this special banquet of salacious information.

Aug 30-Sep 11, Illawara Performing Arts Centre, 32 Burelli Street, Woollongong, $20-56, 42245999 merrigong.com.au