WHAT started in 2015 as small fundraising effort has today grown into a community theatre company tackling big issues.<\/p>\n
Jeffrey Bryant Jones held catchups in his house in Chewton for him and his friends to help raise money for the Clown Doctors, a group who aim to bring joy and laughter to children in hospital.<\/p>\n
Eventually, Hobo Playhouse was born with the plan of putting social issues on stage.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe mainly had about 12 people in my dining room, we\u2019d have actors and poets and singers, and they\u2019d come along and perform, they\u2019d donate, and we\u2019d have a big bowl of soup and some wine,\u201d Mr Jones said.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom there, two years later it evolved into a theatre company presenting small shows in Castlemaine.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019d mainly present shows with social realism themes, our first play was about homelessness and other themes include things like Alzheimer\u2019s, carers, mental health, LGBTIQ, suicide, also happy topics.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Jones said they aim to give the audience something to relate too, while also educating viewers about difficult topics.<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of the plays we put on are comedy dramas, they start off very funny, and they draw the audience in and then there\u2019s a major twist where the drama comes in,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s basically like holding up a mirror to the audience where their laughing at something and five minutes later they might be crying.\u201d<\/p>\n