Opening this week, as part of the Fringe 2004 Festival, a fantastic new musical comedy:

Written and Directed by Steve Gagen
Music by Margaret Somerville
September 23, 24, 25 and 30, and October 1 and 2 at 8.00 pm
Sundays 26 September and 3 October at 2.00 pm
Mechanics Institute Performing Arts Centre
(Corner of Sydney Road and Glenyon Road, Brunswick)
Bookings: 9388-1942

Prefer bike-paths to freeways? Concerned about inappropriate development threatening a cherished way of life? Tired of get-rich-quick schemes and shonky sales pitches? Then this play is for you.

Cheer on the good guys and rejoice as the baddies get their comeuppance in a feel-good fable for our times.

All the characters are larger-than life - slimy Sam Snakeoil, the used bike salesman, with his doltish assistants Myrtle Ford, Ben Digo and Alice Springs, bossy Edwina, the wicked stepmother and her smarmy son Walter, the eponymous (if dopey) Mulga Bill and his childhood sweetheart Noreen, the barmaid with a smart mouth and a heart of gold, Harriet Flash, the money-hungry mayor and her plodding shadow Constable Pill, and not forgetting Saltbush Jack the Swaggie who, with his faithful dog Ralph, saves the town from a dreadful fate.

The play takes a few not-so-gentle swipes at the 'develop at all costs' mentality that threatens to turn quiet urban neighbourhoods and rural backwaters into casinos, freeways and high-rise wastelands - all in the name of Progress!

Sam Snakeoil and Harriet may have adopted "Eaglehawk's on the Move" as their slogan, but don't expect a heavy-handed message: this is definitely lighthearted, something the whole family will enjoy. There's even free lollies!

With an enthusiastic cast of 25, plus a bush-band, this play will appeal to both adults and children. It features a chorus line of bicycles, with jingling bells, and the immortal lines

Mulga Bill's Bicycle will be performed in the Mechanics Institute Performing Arts Centre (MIPAC), corner of Sydney Road and Glenyon Road, Brunswick, on September 23, 24, 25 and 30, and October 1 and 2 at 8.00 pm, with 2.00 pm matinées on Sunday 26 September and Sunday 3 October.

For bookings, please ring MIPAC directly on 9388-1942. For enquiries, please email the director Steve Gagen.

This show forms part of the 2004 Melbourne Fringe Arts Festival.

  • Download a Flyer for the show in Adobe PDF format

    • Music from the Show

    You can hear some of the tunes from the show as MIDI files by clicking the appropriate link..


    Moreland Theatre Company Inc (A20748T)
    PO Box 117, Moreland, Victoria, Australia 3058
    Telephone (03) 9386 0048
    Email plays@moreland.org.au

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