Local queer Kelly play set to slay

NED Kelly and his gang are taking to the stage at the Melbourne Fringe Festival as they fight to create the the Queerdom of Slaytoria.

Ned Kelly the Big Gay Musical follows the group of bushrangers as the battle to overcome colonialist rulers.

The cast includes actors from regional Victoria, including Ballarat, as well as drag performers and musicians.

The writer and director of the musical, Kaine Hansen, said he was inspired by the idea of juxtaposing bushrangers, who have historically been perceived as masculine figures, with queer characters.

“I’m always a big lover of history but I’m also very much into writing queer stories and I thought it was a very funny combination,” he said.

“It feels like the Ned Kelly story is such a masculine one and tied to so much Australian masculinity, so I thought doing a queer retelling was something that felt dangerous and exciting.”

His inspiration also came from Captain Moonlight, a bushranger who many people refused to believe was gay.

“If I look at it historically, Captain Moonlight was a gay bushranger and people over the years just thought he had a good friend,” said Hansen.

“Now all the evidence has come out and people are more accepting, people are now like he was definitely a gay bushranger.

“It blew me away that bushrangers are so tied to being masculine and aggressive and violent and yet one of them was gay and that was supressed for years.”

Hansen hopes attendees have fun at the show and are surprised by its absurd and crazy aspects.

“It’s silly, it’s funny and I really tried to make sure I balanced the historical elements while still trying to be absurd and funny,” he said.

“It tells the story that things aren’t as black and white as they seem.”

Watch Ned Kelly the Big Gay Musical until Friday 20 October at the Festival Hub. Tickets can be purchased at melbournefringe.com.au.