MEAT

$5.40 – $15.00

Meat is the tale of a butcher called Stan, whose pride in his craft is second to nothing.
While awaiting the arrival of his unreliable apprentice, he recounts episodes involving the fascinating characters from his often hilarious past. He resurrects the butcher shop of his golden days - complete with sixteen robust butchers all dancing in a surrealistic chorus line.
We meet his regulars - Mrs. Shorthorn and Mr. Hereford. And old Pete the wino, who uses unsavory tactics to get free bacon for breakfast.
As the apprentice abandons ship for the safety of the supermarket chain, Stan's frustration erupts:

"You're a traitor to the trade!
You're a traitor… to the species…!"

The audience then gets a craftsman's lesson in quality butchery, witnessing the dissection of a lamb live on stage. At the same time they see him dissect his own life and bare his lonely bones.
Stan believes that his butcher shop is not dissimilar to the stage, where quality customer service requires the same performance skills as acting. To be an actor he reasons…

"…requires only the ability to bullshit. And I'm more than capable on that front…!"

Stan's hilarious exploits with his lady customers reveal the delightfully cheeky nature of his unique Australian character and his incorrigible instinct to perform.

He dances. He sings. He slaughters.

Meat is an empathetic and comic look at a tradesman reflecting on the rights and wrongs of his life. It is a peep through the keyhole to the backstage of a butchery, performed by an actor who himself did his apprenticeship in the trade.

APT