In an age of noise and distraction, Playback offers something quieter and perhaps more radical: the grace of being heard, and the wonder of recognising ourselves in one another.
What is Playback Theatre?
Playback theatre is a type of applied theatre which asks the audience to share real stories from their lives. Using improvisation, the stories are then played back to the audience.
A typical playback performance will have a conductor or facilitator, 4 actors and a musician.
The conductor will warm up the audience to sharing their lives by hearing short moments from the audience, then as the performance progresses, the stories get more involved.
The aim is to reflect the inner experience of the audience member or teller.
These experiences can consist of the incidental or the more significant moments in their lives.
Tell us something about the origins of Playback Theatre?
Playback was started by Jonathan Fox and Jo Salas in upstate New York in 1975.
It was a combination of their backgrounds, Fox in improvisation and Salas as a musician, and their collective interest in oral storytelling, and theatre movements emerging at that time, such as the theatre of the oppressed. Fox and Salas developed a structured unscripted format that could reflect the audience’s lived experience and the broader social contexts.
How long has it been in Australia?
In 1980, Fox and Salas held a series of Playback workshops and performances in Australia and New Zealand. Sydney Playback was the second company formed and is now the longest running Playback company in the world. Companies were also founded in Melbourne, Perth, Hobart, Wellington, Auckland and a number of other cities/regional centres. There are now hundreds of Playback Theatre companies worldwide with regular gatherings and conferences.
What inspires you to keep Playback Theatre alive? How does Playback Theatre challenge or inspire its audience?
That initial goal of honouring everyday stories by bringing them to life on stage and the power of stories to create connections across an audience is what continues to inspire us.
Essentially it is Connection to other people through shared experience.
It’s representation. Everyone has a story worthy of being on stage.
To see your own story being represented on stage can be a profound experience for the teller.
Bringing playback theatre to marginalised communities whose stories are not told, let alone seen on a stage, is immensely rewarding.
The themes that emerge with each story will often resonate with many members of an audience, which creates connection.
In our modern lives, it’s rare that we allow someone to share a full story from their life. Even in a social setting; interruptions and distractions can sway even the most steadfast storyteller.
It also has great immediacy. The usual route from page to stage can take months if not years. Playback is much more immediate. 
Playback theatre challenges it’s audience by allowing space for stories that otherwise remain unheard. We actively try to hear from those that wouldn’t normally speak up.
We as practitioners share with each other the joy of listening deeply to people and their stories, and to each other on stage, to turning lived experiences into theatre. Our audiences experience being heard, experience how universal their personal stories are, feel connected to the people around them, and see their experiences from new perspectives.
Where does Playback perform?
We do shows by invitation for organisations – NGOs, community groups, companies and government. We work best where a large group of people have a commonality such as a community group or a conference.
We also give public performances about 6 times a year.
How do you choose a theme for a Playback show?
We think about what is alive in the community at the time. Our themes are intended to connect with people’s experiences and gives them an opportunity to tell their stories, both light and dark.
Recently we had a show called On the Eve of International Women’s Day. We want the audience to be prompted to reflect on that theme within their life. What story emerges for you when you think of the women in your life, their hardships, their fight, the struggle, the celebration, the hilarity.
Does Playback reflect contemporary issues?
We reflect what the audience brings, so yes.
Sometimes we offer a prompt. Our recent performance On the Brink came from wanting to create a space for people who might be feeling on edge about the precarious nature of the current world order. On the brink of war for instance, but we also had stories about being on the brink of parenthood and another about grappling with AI.
With commissioned work it is often about what is going on for an organisation; upheaval in the workplace or organisational change, some organisations want to celebrate their membership or recognise achievements.
How do you navigate narrative accuracy versus creative reinterpretation in telling a person’s story?
We are always aiming to accurately reflect the heart of our tellers’ stories. We listen deeply and openly to hear the details of the story, and to find the core of the story.
We start with structured short form improvisations and move into longer forms midway through the show. We listen to the music and go from there. If a story starts in a specific place, we will focus on building that landscape, or if it is a relationship, we will start with the two meeting, and the nature of that relationship. It’s rarely a literal retelling.
We use music, monologue, movement and metaphor, alongside dialogue and other theatrical elements, like chorus for instance. We try to capture the essence of the story. We are not aiming to include every single detail. The audience has heard the story. We are aiming to theatricalise it, so the teller sees their story through that lens, in a different light or a broader context.
What is the most rewarding part of bringing a personal story to the stage?
When we can see, hear and feel that the story has resonated not only with the teller, but with the audience. Knowing that we have connected with and moved the teller.
When everything comes together, it can be a very moving and powerful medium.
As the audience have all heard the story, it can be fascinating and sometimes hilarious to watch the team create it in real time. We know what is coming in the story, and watching the actors choosing where to start, finding and following a path to that story is a part of the satisfaction for the audience.
When the look on a teller’s face confirms that the enactment has touched them deeply. When the audience reaction allows you and the teller to know that what has been shared and enacted has resonated deeply with others.
Can you tell us about the creative team and what they bring to each production?
The conductor has a key role in creating a sense of trust in the audience that allows people to feel safe in sharing a story. The actors and musician then hold the personal and social aspects of the story in a way that ensures the teller feels their story has been heard.
The company is currently made up of 13 people who hold various roles within the structure of the company. We all work together to bring our shows to life, in rehearsals, in the lead up to performances, and for the duration of the show.
Are there any unexpected challenges or revelations in producing a Playback show?
The only constant is the unexpected.
We never know what our show will be. Because we come with no script – the audience gives us our script – and anything can emerge. Our conductors are skilled at supporting the audience through the experience of sharing with each other. The Playback Theatre method itself has practices developed over its 50 years that foster psychological safety that have been likened to a coming together of friends around a campfire.
The unexpected challenges and revelations are what makes Playback rich and exciting. The team never knows what will emerge and works constantly to listen and respond empathically to whatever is offered.
What do you hope audiences take away from Playback?
We hope they are inspired by the stories each of us hold individually and in common,
and hope they are reminded of the power and value of their own stories and the
sense of community that can be created through sharing those stories.
We hope they feel a range of emotions and we hope they feel heard. A good show is one where audience members hear great stories, see beautiful theatre, feel the joy of improvisation, laugh, feel moved, and see how connected we all are through our experiences.
I mean that’s the goal… it is improvisation, so none of us know exactly how it will go down.
After attending the April Performance “On The Brink” the writer spoke with Playback’s Lucinda (Lucy) Gleeson (Artistic Director) and Michael Pooley of playbacktheatre.com.au whose collective responded to my questions.
Look out for their upcoming show
East Sydney Community and Arts Centre
34 Burton St Darlinghurst
Sunday 9th August 2026 @ 5pm
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