A peak behind the curtain at Bendigo Theatre Company

EVERY seat was filled last week for opening night of Bendigo Theatre Company’s current production Two and Two Make Sex.

The audience tittered as the intimate lives of two couples in 1970s London unfolded on stage of the BTC Arts Shed.

After the show, actors Emily Bibby and Ethan Larkins, said there was a sense of relief among the cast.

“I’m so relieved that we got through it, and just grateful that people found it genuinely funny,” Bibby said.

For Larkins hours and hours of preparation was validated by the audience.

“The whole time you’re rehearsing it by the end of 12 weeks you’re like ‘none of this is funny to me anymore,’ but it became funny again tonight,” he said.

The six-person cast rehearsed for twelve weeks under the direction of Keva Lloyd, who chose the script for its 70s nostalgia and ensemble of characters.

Bibby said when she first saw the title of the play, she feared she was about to be in a retelling of Fifty Shades of Grey.

“But it turned out to be more 50 shades of brown,” she said.

The farcical comedy hinges on the dynamics between the six characters, which Bibby said took a lot of practice to get right.

“We didn’t start by doing much reading, we started by acting straight away,” she said.

“So we started the blocking and the movement, and getting around each other and getting to know each other right away.”

The relationship of the cast onstage filtered to their life backstage, and Larkins said it was those connections that made theatre special.

Larkins said being onstage was about being true to his character so he could support his cast mates and perform for the audience.

“That means that when you come off the stage you’ve been supported, and you’ve supported others in a way that you just don’t normally get to do.

“And it creates really lasting friendships and connections,” he said.

Two and Two Make Sex is the first show of 2023 to be performed in BTC’s Blackbox Theatre located within the company’s home base in Golden Square.

The show will run until 21 October at BTC Arts Shed in Golden Square and tickets are available from the Bendigo Venues and Events website.