Leading ladies
There are formidably talented women treading treadin the boards all over Melbourne this t autumn.
Meet four wonder women starring on Melbourne’s stages
Anna Lise Phillips Phill plays Woman in Wild Unlike some actors who live in the spotlight, Darwin-born Darwin-b Anna Lise Phillips is a private person. “I don’t even like it when I ggo into a shop and the shopattendshopattendant asks me about my myday,” day,” she says. “So the idea that my mycompu computer is watching me24/me24/7 and my mypho phone is listening to tome me – it’s a abit bit terrifying.” terr British playwright playwrightmike Mike Bartlett’s Ba Wild deals, in part, with withq questions of privacy and the rapid rap growth of surveillance. It takes take place in a Moscow Moscowhotelwher hotel where a man is hiding afterwhistleafterwhistleblowing on the US Usgovernmen government and its mass surveillance surveillanceof of citizens. citiz Phillips plays a mysteriouswmysteriouswoman who arrives and tells the man she’s from fromwikileaks. Wikileaks. Phillips Ph says she was captivated by the play’s wit from the first page but is reluctant to reveal its twists and turns. “It’s kind of like Black Mirror on stage, except at the end you don’t want to slit your wrists,” she says. Melbourne Theatre Company’s production of Wild marks Phillips’ first play in five years; she’s been based in LA for the last six, working across film and TV. “I’m a massive fan of writers, and the great thing about theatre is that the writer always comes first.” The one thing I admire most about ‘Woman’: “Her intelligence. She’s very sharp and very funny. She’s like a genius clown; absolutely brilliant.” Òsouthbank Theatre, 140 Southbank Blvd, Southbank 3006. 03 8688 0800. www.mtc.com.au. $39$124. May 5-Jun 9.