People

Jem Splitter
Director / Co-writer

It’s hard to write a biography for someone who lives their life by the tenet of “What Would Joss Whedon Do?” without writing a biography of, well, Joss Whedon. But to avoid resorting to the supreme arrogance of making the comparison between him and Joss, this much can be said of Jem: He’s lived a long, long time – considerably longer than most nineteen year olds (he’s twenty) – and spent most of that time inside some theatre or other. Indeed, most of that time has been spent on the stage, fooling about and making a general embarrassment of himself – so it’s about time he stepped behind the desk and started telling everyone else what to do.

In this show, he gets to do both those things: firstly, by putting the words on the page, with the help of his colleague Will (and that fellow Wodehouse); and secondly, by yelling instructions to actors like “louder!” and “sillier!”, and occasionally instructions to designers like “greener!” and “sillier!” This, according to Jem, is most agreeable, and worth the stress, because he was going to lose all that hair eventually anyway.

Something Fresh  is the perfect show for him to start his directing career. He is, after all, not only affably and ineffably silly, but also a complete sap, and finds himself completely at home in the milieu of this constantly funny, completely adorable romantic comedy.

I also enjoy wearing hats and confusing readers of short autobiographies.

Jen Speirs
Assistant director

Jen Speirs is a twen-teen year old Performing Arts student who just doesn't know how to say no. In terms of theatre that is! She is in her third year at Monash, and will have completed her Bachelor of Performing Arts by the end of next year. (She's taking it slow: more time for more shows.)

Since at a young age, when she played the Virgin Mary in her kindergarten nativity play, be it acting, stage managing or, in this case directing, Jen is in her element. Who would have thought that a windowless room with no natural sunlight could be so appealing?

Asked to be a part of Something Fresh, images of her name in lights were quickly replaced by megaphones and a red fold-out chair with her name on the back. (These were then further replaced with images of working alongside Jem Splitter. Nightmares were had.) Working as assistant director has been a great opportunity for Jen to build her skills not only as a theatre maker, but also gives her the privilege to see words on paper come to life for the very first time while working closely with the writers of those very words.

Dubbed "ass director" by cast and crew, Jen can only predict amazing things to come, in the hilarious world that is Something Fresh.

Jen also collects teapots and is taller than Jem Splitter.