Parliament House in Canberra has been under intense scrutiny in recent years, and the picture created in the public’s mind isn’t a pretty one. Accusations of harassment, bullying, round-the-clock drunkenness and sexual assault have vaulted Parliament House well up the list of least desirable workplaces imaginable – especially for women.

Yet, for some, a job in Parliament House remains powerfully alluring. But how much of your life – and how many of your principles – are you willing to sacrifice to get it done? These questions and more are explored in Housework, a new comedy by Emily Steel, presented by State Theatre Company South Australia and starring comedian-actors Susie Youssef (The Project; Deadloch) and Emily Taheny (Shaun Micallef’s Mad as Hell).

Emily Taheny (left) and Susie Yousef: Housework. Image supplied

Housework centres on Kelly, a bright junior staffer in the electorate office of Ruth Mandour (Youssef), and her brilliant but exhausted Chief of Staff, Anna (Taheny), who juggles new policy proposals, a husband struggling with their daughter back home, and the intricacies of choosing the right pastries for her boss’s parliamentary breakfast.

Kelly (Franca Lafosse) is thrilled to step behind the scenes...