Opening to a standing ovation at its world premiere in Brisbane, Dear Son is a theatrical anthology adapted by Isaac Drandic and John Harvey from the 2021 book of the same name by Thomas Mayo. The book compiles 13 letters written by First Nations men, including Mayo himself, about what it means to be a father, a son, and a man.

Directed by Drandic, with Assistant Director Tibian Wyles, the stage adaptation of Dear Son offers advice, reflections, and recollections that both challenge and celebrate ideas of First Nations masculinity through a chorus of stories and perspectives.

While the book is epistolary, the theatrical work frames the letters as conversations within a circle of friends gathered in a cookhouse. The play is broken into three acts – letters of longing, loss, and love – and each of the five actors perform multiple monologues adapted from the book’s letters.

Changes in costuming, designed by Delvene Cockatoo-Collins, and projected subtitles delineate one story from the next. Discussions among the men between the monologues maintains a sense of momentum and dynamism.

Dear Son at the Bille Brown Theatre, Brisbane. Photo © David Kelly

Dear Son is performed...