The inaugural Melbourne Fringe Climate Crisis Commission, this one-hander brings together two notable young theatre talents for the first time since their student days.

Written and performed by Patrick Livesey, I hope this means something is a companion piece to their play Naomi. It’s directed by Benjamin Nichol, a playwright and director whose recent string of powerful monologues include Kerosene, Milk and Blood.

This is not quite so psychologically subtle or narratively intriguing as Nichol’s work. However, Livesey effectively invites audiences to consider the climate crisis in the context of the related existential one.

Patrick Livesey: I hope this means something. Photo © Jacinta Oaten

I hope this means something sees Constantine, a young person from South Australian wetland region the Coorong, trying to make their way in Melbourne. They bring emotional baggage from a troubled childhood we glimpse in flashbacks.

Finally landing a job as a digital producer for an organisation concerned with green investment, Constantine succeeds until they are told to tone down the messaging.

Increasingly alarmed about the climate crisis and isolated from colleagues, they suffer from deteriorating mental health. Haunted by violent visions of environmental and personal...