“… on the surface it is a light and entertaining pantomime of sorts, what lies beneath is an expose of the convict fed slave labour system, a crisis of identity for new Australians, and a celebration of the deeply moral battler… “
Christina Donoghue
Venue: Liverpool Powerhouse
Liverpool NSW
Dates: Until August 15th 2026
Bunyip Barons by Timothy Smith, is charming, humorous engagement with early Australian colonial would-be aristocracy.
Newly married author, Louisa Anne Meredith (Melissa Anderson), has recently arrived in 1939 Sydney. A guest of the Coy family, Louisa is determined to make her next book a faithful account of the experiences of all members of the colony—convicts and free settlers alike.
Upon discovering the foul treatment of the slave class and the criminal hypocrisy of her gracious hosts, what ensues is barely sheathed plan, motivated by blackmail and morality.
Melissa Anderson, playing Louisa Meredith, was strong, understated, and believable. Stephen Wheatly was comedic and sympathetic as the hard-drinking convict, Silas Hegarty. Peter David Alison gave a standout performance as escaped convict Wallace Hopkins, embodying an intensity and noble carriage that challenged stereotypes of convicts and low birth.
Liverpool Performing Arts Ensemble’s Bunyip Barons is quaint narrative piece that kept the audience laughing from beginning to the end. Whilst on the surface it is a light and entertaining pantomime of sorts, what lies beneath is an expose of the convict fed slave labour system, a crisis of identity for new Australians, and a celebration of the deeply moral battler, that has become the scaffold of the Australian spirit.
The play is inspired by the remarks made by poet and writer Louise Anne Meredith who described Sydney’s gentry as superficial, vulgar, and having no intellectual pursuits at all. Her observations are detailed in her book Notes and Sketches of NSW.
Open for a short season Bunyip Barons at Liverpool Powerhouse closes on 15th August.
Christina Donoghue, Theatre Now
