Verity Laughton's 'Long Tan'

Verity Laughton’s latest semi-verbatim audio-theatre production, Long Tan, has received terrific reviews after its brief season at STCSA’s Space Theatre.

On a hot, rain-sodden afternoon in 1966, in the glutinous mud of a rubber plantation in Phuoc Tuy Province, South Vietnam, 105 Australian and three New Zealand soldiers clashed with approximately 2,500 Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army troops. In the ensuing battle, 18 Australians died (17 were killed in action and one died of wounds 9 days later) and more than 245 communist Vietnamese.

Long Tan brings together a cast of 12 actors in a unique production that parachutes audiences into the soldiers’ experience – gunfire, mortar fire, pounding rain, insect clouds, screams and sudden silence – all orchestrated with sonic intensity to capture the pandemonium and entrapment under fire.

“…a fine play about a tragic event and this exceptional production deserves a life far beyond this short season.” – Murray Bramwell, The Australian

“…a profound and often moving experience.” – Peter Burdon, The Advertiser

“…a moving and personal window into a dark corner of our country’s history.” – Jo Vabolis, Indaily