Lyric tackles childhood anxiety
GO Away Mr Worrythoughts was a book written and illustrated by Nicky Johnston from her experience as a mother of a child with anxiety.
A play was then created from the book, and tells of the boy Bayden being crippled by worries, spoken to him by the frightening puppet head Mr Worrythoughts.
This scary creature magnifies Bayden’s mistakes and suggests the many possible horrible things that might happen.
Bayden, with the help of his father, learns to say, “Go away Mr Worrythoughts, your thoughts are not welcome here!”
With the help of his friends Tara and dog Rocky, Bayden uses his imagination to give himself courage and hope. He creates a Worrybox into which he can post his worries so he can read them out later to himself or to someone else.
Leongatha Lyric Theatre will present the show at local primary schools this December.
Bayden is played by Max Duff, who has performed with Wonthaggi Theatrical Group in The Cocky of Bungaree and The Boy from Oz. Next year he will be in Year 12 studying singing and drama at Newhaven College.
Mr Worrythoughts is played by Chenneth Weeraratne from Foster who has performed with FAMDA in The Web and The Day they Shot John Lennon. He has also performed in school plays in the USA and Sri Lanka. He is at present studying law.
Tara/The Teacher is performed by Kaitlyn Gale who has performed in Leongatha Lyric Theatre’s the Wizard of Oz and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. She has been dancing for 13 years at Care2dance Leongatha. Kaitlyn plays cornet in South Gippsland Brass Band. Next year she will be studying Year 12 at Chairo Christian College.
Martin, the father, is played by Ben Gibbins, who has performed with Wonthaggi Theatrical Group in The Cocky of Bungaree and The Boy from Oz, and he was a lead performer in Mary Mckillop College’s High School Musical.
Ben studied acting in Melbourne at NIDA. He is looking forward to performing with Leongatha Lyric Theatre next year in Young Frankenstein, the Musical while studying Year 12.
Director Sue Lindsay has written and directed plays for primary and secondary schools, as well as community theatre.
She directed Our Country’s Good for Leongatha Lyric Theatre, The Web and the Day They Shot John Lennon for FAMDA and The Cocky of Bungaree for Wonthaggi Theatrical Group. She is rehearsing Song of the Seals, a family show, for performance on January 4,5,6,10 and 11 at the State Coal Mine, Wonthaggi.
Assistant director Laurie Martin has performed in Our Country’s Good, California Suite and Annie with Leongatha Lyric Theatre.
This play will be touring local primary schools on Wednesday, December 12; Thursday, December 13; and Monday, December 17.
The schools that have booked the production are Koonwarra Village School, Korumburra Primary, Tarwin Lower Primary and Inverloch Primary.
Further information from the director, Sue Lindsay at [email protected]
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