Slap.Bang.Kiss: ManPAC 2025 review by Nanci Nott
Written by multi-award-winning playwright Dan Giovannoni and directed by Katy Maudlin, SLAP. BANG. KISS. unfolds through three interwoven storylines: an act of political defiance (slap), a school shooting (bang), and a world-record-breaking kiss in a Woolworths carpark (kiss).
Performed by a talented trio of actors – Tyallah Bullock, Conor Leach, and Tsungirai Wachenuka – these stories are told in unison, reinforcing an underlying theme of unity. Each character is the first domino in their own cascade of change as they each find the impetus to rise up against the grip of futility. Through livestreams, tv interviews, and social media, their respective messages make positive impacts on the world.
Direct narration in the form of three distinct streams of consciousness is interspersed with active dialogue and present-tense plot. The cast of three portray an array of minor characters, in addition to their main roles, with impressive performances ensuring smooth transitions, despite no stage-setting or costume changes. Their standalone stories are told as overlapping narratives, which feel organically cohesive despite the fact these solitary protagonists never actually meet one another.
Kate Davis’ set design is sparse and minimalistic, but malleable, symbolic, and effective. Twenty concrete cubes act as set pieces, backdrops, props, and even (during one moment) sound effects. Actors rearrange the cubes throughout the performance in a way that feels natural to the narrative, enabling the stage to be many places at once, often simultaneously. Ian Moorhead’s ambient but atmospherically heavy score is timed perfectly to complement movement and dialogue, while Amelia Lever-Davidson’s lighting emphasises emotional tonality and creates a sense of place.
Dan Giovannoni’s writing is poetic and sensory. Appropriately edgy without seeming contrived, the physicality of his prose is redolent with phenomenological detail. Confronting homophobia, oppression, gun violence, disempowerment, Giovannoni speaks to the power of unity. Despite the heavy themes, this production is an empowering testament to solidarity, optimism, and sheer determination.
Witty, poetic, and irreverent, Slap.Bang. Kiss. is a battle cry for teens to “do something”. It leaves its audience – especially the adolescent demographic – feeling hopeful, empowered, and globally connected.
- Melbourne Theatre Company
- Playwright: Dan Giovannoni
- Director: Katy Maudlin
- Cast: Tyallah Bullock, Conor Leach and Tsungirai Wachenuka
- Set & Costume Designer: Kate Davis