A Shakespearean classic and a true Australian tragedy intertwine in a moving new work, This Rough Magic, coming to The Street Theatre on 10-19 November.

Wednesday, 15 December 2010: Australian shores saw the worst civilian maritime disaster in over a century when a fishing boat carrying more than 90 people crashed into rocks alongside Christmas Island.

“At the time, it seemed really obvious that offshore detention wasn’t working and that the really harsh response to that wasn’t deterring people, it was definitely something that stuck with me,” says playwright Helen Machalias.

The wreck killed 50 asylum seekers. After receiving medical treatment, the remaining 39 were taken to mandatory detention on Christmas Island and the three crew members were charged. This Rough Magic follows Iranian refugees during their time on the island, capturing how they interact with locals and a new life, while drawing inspiration from Shakespeare’s The Tempest. 

“A lot of Shakespearean plays start with a catastrophic shipwreck,” says Ms Machalias. “I liked the idea of that being at the beginning of the play and marrying real-world events with the classic texts that a lot of people are familiar with.”

While many themes in The Tempest lent themselves easily to the story Ms Machalias wanted to tell, she said it was a case of using them in a slightly different way.

“The Tempest has had a lot of post-colonial literary theory applied to it; a lot of people have interpreted The Tempest as being about the struggle for land and belonging, and who has a right to be free or not,” she says.

The main character of Shakespeare’s work, Prospero was also of interest to the playwright; she wanted to explore what being a refugee would look like for the iconic leading man. Originally wanting to stay at the documentary end of the spectrum, Ms Machalias relied on refugee accounts and media reports; over time, her work was adjusted to include some whimsy.

“What came in because of the Iranian background of the refugees was a whole lot of Persian mythology, poetry and storytelling. It’s ended up being, hopefully, a really beautiful mix of real-life accounts and things that are grounded in research, but also the beautiful Shakespeare as well as the Persian and Iranian cultural elements.”

Taking a moment in Australia’s history that she believes isn’t well understood, Ms Machalias wanted to shine a light on the parts that were untold, like the relationship between refugees and the island locals.

“When the ship crashed, a lot of locals, because the navy was taking a long time to get there, they got involved in the rescue effort. I thought that was a really interesting starting point for play -seeing these two worlds colliding and the relationships that came out of that,” she says.

A stunning natural setting full of caves waterfalls and incredible crab migrations, Christmas Island was the perfect landscape to tell this story. Ms Machalias says the juxtaposition of the beautiful setting and detention centre it hosts fits the tale.

“The plot is really about all these different characters are navigating that [those relationships] and the different ways of trying to secure their freedom using magic and other means.”

While tackling a tough and relevant issue, the play has moments of music and playfulness. The playwright says it is a celebration of life and what people do in order to create a better one for themselves.

“People might have an idea in their head of what a production about refugee issue might look and sound like, then when they see this play, it will be completely unexpected in terms of the tone and the dialogue,” says Ms Machalias. “I think anything that surprises people is always a good way of challenging them in a non-threatening way; something unexpected just gets you thinking.”

The Christmas Island detention centre re-opened during the development of the work. Ms Machalias says although it’s based on a historic event, the issue is still alive. She hopes that audiences leave having experienced a great night at the theatre and are moved by the subject.  

“I would really love for This Rough Magic to connect people’s heads and hearts and move them emotionally and that they leave with a greater understanding of refugee issues,” she says.

Experience This Rough Magic at The Street Theatre, 10-19 November; thestreet.org.au

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