RECOMMENDED FOR: Years 9-10
CAST SIZE: 12 in total (6F, 6M – could be mixed up)
A PLAY TO: Read, read aloud, study, and perform
GENRE: Drama, comedy, non-naturalism, multi-locations
THEMESE: Friendship, fitting in, bullying, resilience
CURRICULUM LINKS: The Arts-Drama, General Capabilities – Literacy, Personal and Social Learning, Critical and Creative Thinking
SYNOPSIS: EZ and his gang of bullies have created a fake social media account to inflict torment and misery on their fellow students. The account’s name, “April Aardvark”, echoes through the halls with fear and confusion. The gang is smugly satisfied with the results, until the day a student shows up to class claiming to be April Aardvark. She is the living, breathing manifestation of the account – a mean, obscene insult machine. She spreads chaos through the school, turning student against student and bully against bully. But is she really who she claims to be? And if so, how can she be stopped? Only one thing is certain – she is the greatest bully that ever lived.
STAGING: The stage will be a fluid space, encompassing a range of different locations, primarily signified through lighting and sound, and occasionally props such as benches, chairs, desks and the base of a statue. The theme of bullying is one many young people face. The playwright, Nathanial Moncrieff says about his play it concerns “the importance of embracing our differences and empathising with others as it is about the pitfalls of modern technology and online anonymity. It’s also about people working together to bring about positive change, which is something we need more of in the world right now. Because while technology can bring out the worst in us, it also has the capacity to bring people and communities together” (playwright’s note in script).
