An ingenious theatrical gem, small metal objects unfolds amid the pedestrian traffic against the backdrop of the city. On a raised seating bank with individual sets of headphones, the audience is wired in to an intensely personal drama being played out somewhere in the crowd. Gary and Steve are the kind of men who normally escape notice. But here they play an inadvertent but pivotal role in the night of two ambitious executives they’ve arranged to meet for a transaction. As the intimacy of their situation develops, small metal objects becomes a sly and luminous depiction of everyday issues most take for granted.

small metal objects explores how respect is withheld from outsiders – the disabled or unemployed – who society deems ‘unproductive’. Set against the shifting backdrop of the city, the notion that everything has its price couldn’t be called into starker relief.

Devisors: Simon Laherty, Bruce Gladwin, Sonia Teuben, Genevieve Morris, Jim Russell

Director: Bruce Gladwin

Performers: Simon Laherty, Genevieve Picot, Jim Russell, Brian Tilley

Sound Design and Composition: Hugh Covill

Costume Design: Shio Otani

Supported by: small metal objects presented by the Geelong Arts Centre is supported by the City of Greater Geelong through its Creative Communities Grant Program; the Department of Education Victoria, through its Strategic Partnerships Program; the Anthony Costa Foundation; and the Cassandra Gantner Foundation. small metal objects presented by Back to Back Theatre in collaboration with Fed Square is supported through the Melbourne City Revitalisation Fund – a $200 million partnership of the Victorian Government and the City of Melbourne; the Restart Investment to Sustain and Expand (RISE) Fund – an Australian Government initiative; the Department of Education Victoria, through its Strategic Partnerships Program; the Anthony Costa Foundation; and the Cassandra Gantner Foundation.small metal objects was developed with support from Creative Victoria and assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council. Initiated through the Victoria Commissions, and supported by the Victorian Government through the Community Support Fund. Back to Back Theatre is supported by Australia Council for the Arts, Creative Victoria, and the City of Greater Geelong.