threadbare is a new play by multidisciplinary artist Tomas Parrish-Chynoweth – a witty and heartfelt queer story about belonging, memory, the families we are born into and the families we choose.
The play heralds an exciting new voice in Parrish-Chynoweth, and features some properly excellent performances by the ensemble of talented actors, many of whom are graduates from the same year at Melbourne’s Victorian College of the Arts.
Sasha (performed by Parrish-Chynoweth), an arty sweetheart in patchwork denim pants and cropped tees, is getting married to their non-binary mini-kilt-over pants-wearing gentle giant of a partner Cayden (Blake Appelqvist). As is common to many LGBTQIA+ people, for Sasha, their friends are their chosen family – the people who they love and feel safe to be themselves with.
The foursome of friends is made up by sunny and quirky bird-loving braniac, the bespectacled, hot pants-wearing and cowboy-booted Riley (Matissa Laida) and heart-of-gold pragmatist, the steel capped boot and oversized sportswear-wearing Kahani (Sarah Fitzgerald).
The group spend their time planning the upcoming nuptials, getting high and hanging out, their witty banter and friendly ribbing telling a story of four young people fluent with the vernacular of queer identity politics, and attempting to navigate their way in a world aligned with their ethics.
And really, they’re four cutie patootie young queer people who are fun, funny and clearly love each other. Their ensemble scenes are a highlight and showcase both Parrish-Chynoweth’s talent for dialogue and the excellent acting skills of (and chemistry between) all four actors. It’s a Stan comedy-drama series I’d watch any day.
The dramatic thrust of the play comes from the tension between Sasha’s values and those of their beloved Grandmother, Elaine (played by Rebecca Morton), who raised them, and her unwillingness to accept Sasha’s queerness, or accept their fiancé as anything more than their ‘friend’.
As Sasha is battling reconciling this relationship, it becomes clear that Elaine is suffering from dementia.
threadbare: chosen family
threadbare is at its strongest when exploring the relationships between the four young people. The focus is firmly on Sasha’s experience, and how their chosen family come to support them, and teach them something about what being a family means.
Sadly, the character of Elaine felt somewhat of a caricature, a woman who we know little about outside of her role as ‘Gran’ – a woman who spends her time embroidering for her grandchildren and doesn’t seem to have any life outside of her Church community and her family.
In contrast to what is scripted as a relatively bland (if caring) and conservative character, her wardrobe pins her as a leftie-learning art teacher who goes to political protests on the weekend.
As her dementia progresses and her memories fade, the story focuses on Sasha’s anger at her decline, while the rest of Sasha’s chosen family pick up the pieces, taking on the responsibility for Elaine’s care.
Giving the audience a stronger insight into who Elaine is, and giving her some layers of complexity beyond her archetype, could help the audience care more when her dementia manifests – beyond its impact on her grandchild.
In the final scene, Elaine directly addresses the audience, which didn’t work to fill in the blanks in her life or experience and felt overall a bit twee, as did a few directorial choices (glitter falling from the ceiling at the end seemed just a bit much, and the sound design sometimes featured overly saccharine background music that jarred).
Despite those reservations, threadbare is a very exciting new play, a queer family drama about belonging, identity and the responsibilities of family, and well-worth seeing.
threadbare is at St Martin’s Youth Theatre, South Yarra, Melbourne, from 15 until 19 July 2025. More information.
threadbare: cast and creatives
Cast: Blake Appelqvist, Sarah Fitzgerald, Matisse Laida, Rebecca Morton, Tomas Parrish-Chynoweth. Director and Contributor: Manali Datar. Assistant Director: Tiah Bullock. Producer: Nick Mayer. Sound Design: Trevor Adelson. Stage Management: Stephanie Lee.
