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Well, that escalated quickly.

After taking a break from making shows, we've somehow gone from creative abstinence to creative overload. And Nikki, it seems, has completely lost the plot. In the best possible way.

There are sculptures made from discarded treasures, a magical garden entered into competition, and a rather ambitious new project involving life drawing, poetry, performance and a whole lot of creative curiosity.

This week, we explore Nikki's wonderfully unconventional relationship with the things she makes, why some ideas take 15 years to find their moment, and what happens when you finally start putting your work out into the world again.

Along the way, we get into intuition versus planning, the strange business of making a creative living, and why the obstacles might actually be the path.

One thing's certain: apparently our creative holiday is over.

Pull up a chair. Things are getting interesting in The Green Room.

https://www.nationaltrust.org.au/places/winns-bakehouse/

P.S. Nikki got her deer sculpture accepted into the art exhibition!

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Five things actors wish directors knew. Five things directors wish actors knew.

After 35-ish years spent acting, directing, teaching and occasionally driving each other slightly mad in rehearsal rooms, Nik & Mik compare wish lists.

We get into trust, preparation, communication, vulnerability, knowing your bloody lines, giving useful direction — and why actors and directors sometimes seem to be speaking entirely different languages while trying to make exactly the same thing.

There are a few war stories, some lessons learnt the hard way and, underneath it all, a lot of love for the beautifully messy business of making theatre together.

Two lists. Ten wishes. Several opinions. Surely this won't start an argument.

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Well, here we are again.

Nik and Mik have found themselves at that familiar creative junction: something new has started to take shape, which means excitement, possibility, logistics, money, doubt, overthinking, and at least one conversation about whether this is actually a good idea.

In this episode, we talk about embarking on another creative project and what that stirs up after years of making work together and separately. We get into the strange cycle of creative momentum: where ideas come from, why some suddenly demand attention, how previous projects shape the next one, and the eternal question of whether to follow the spark or behave like sensible adults.

There’s also plenty of conversation about work, changing priorities, creative identity, and what it means to make something now without automatically sacrificing time, money, energy or wellbeing at the altar of “the project”.

So yes, something new is brewing.

We’re interested. We’re cautious. We’re probably going to do it anyway.

A conversation about beginnings, baggage, creative appetite, and the deeply suspicious phrase: “I’ve had an idea…”

Sharing from the Green Room. 🎭

Got a question or an idea you would like us to discuss? Drop us an email or voice note at mikallenconcept@icloud.com

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We promised ourselves a year off making shows.

We nearly made it. 😂

Mik's got an agent again. Self-tapes are flying in. Nikki's been quietly nursing an idea involving life drawing, poetry and a bit of bohemian mischief.

And now somebody has said the words “Adelaide Fringe.”

This week in The Green Room: getting older in the creative industries, auditions, typecasting, rejection, money, risk — and why, after 35 years, we apparently still can't stop ourselves from making things.

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This week we riff on access, privilege, and belonging in theatre, contrasting their politically charged mentors (apartheid-era rebel theatre and protest-hardened acting teachers) with today’s glossy, well-resourced private school productions and their ready-made industry networks.

We argue that whether you’re a kid in a prestige venue or a tiny regional school, making theatre still builds teamwork, grit, and community—but we draw a hard line between art-making and self-therapy, calling out the industry’s brutal mental-health load and the pressure to keep “feeding the machine” through social capital.

We also debate how disadvantage raises the entry-bar, how privilege can also stunt potential, and how elite circles often become the future investors of creative work. Bottom line: you’ve got agency, but always inside real constraints—and the education system’s “equity” story doesn’t match reality.

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Melbourne Theatre Double: Speakeasy Vaudeville + Eddie Izzard’s Hamlet

Mik and Nik head to Melbourne for a theatre double: a gritty, intimate vaudeville night at Speakeasy Theatre Melbourne and Eddie Izzard’s one-person Hamlet. They rave about Speakeasy’s cabaret vibe, fast-switching acts, and a killer emcee, with highlights ranging from juggling-in-a-too-low-ceiling chaos to burlesque comedy, a squirmy glass stunt, and a crowd-up karaoke finish—plus ideas on how tighter audience play could level it up. Then it’s all praise for Izzard’s stripped-back Hamlet: empty stage, smart lighting, subtle character shifts, clear storytelling, and emotionally punchy moments (especially Ophelia). The trip sparks big thoughts about getting back into theatre and why Melbourne’s year-round arts energy feels so different to Adelaide’s.

Speakeasy links:

https://speakeasytheatre.com.au and https://www.instagram.com/speakeasy_theatre/.

00:00 Episode Intro
01:14 Melbourne Show Plans
02:51 Speakeasy Vaudeville Setup
04:24 What Vaudeville Means
07:36 MC Sets The Tone
10:31 Audience Split And Seating
12:38 Act One Highlights
19:46 Interval And Act Two
22:21 Finale And Crowd Moments
26:25 How To Improve The Format
29:02 Speakeasy Show Vibe
30:15 Adelaide Versus Melbourne
30:49 Vaudeville Highlights Lowlights
33:57 Eddie Izzard Hamlet Setup
37:24 Minimalist Stage Magic
38:59 Understated Character Work
41:34 Standout Moments Ophelia
44:38 Humor And Adaptations
47:00 Mastery And Audience Control
52:28 Theatre Itch Returns
58:29 Melbourne Creative Energy
01:02:14 Final Thoughts And Farewell

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Nik and Mik reflect on how a cash-strapped project pushed them into “parlor theatre”: tiny, intimate shows (often in private homes) historically tied to taboo, political, and community communication. They unpack what changes when the audience is acknowledged in the room—heightened vulnerability, blurred lines between “play” and “real,” the need for consent frameworks (color-coded wristbands), clear boundaries, and aftercare/debrief so people aren’t left raw. They argue this kind of bespoke, underground performance functions like a theatrical zine: handmade, niche, authenticity-driven, and harder for AI to replicate or even track—offering a possible pathway for theatre as AI disrupts acting through replication and follower-driven casting. They also note it demands craft, responsibility, and a different business model built for small networks rather than volume.

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For their 10th episode, Mik and Nick skip the heavy theory and do a quirky retrospective of standout performing-arts memories: Mik’s terrifying year-7 Peter Pan audition that became his first taste of ensemble belonging; youth dance-theatre double bills (Peter Pan/Grease) and the hazards of skimpy costuming, including a mid-show costume tear. They trade college stories of accidental near-nudity (Chicago’s “forgot the boxers” dress rehearsal), then reflect on how dance normalizes exposure and why “uniform” costumes should be adjusted for different bodies. The tone turns briefly profound with 9/11—Mik performing Oedipus that day and Nick holding space for shocked students—before returning to touring highlights: a remote community gifting a seafood feast, a bullying-in-schools show prompting real apologies and disclosures, surreal nights on the Moon Plain near Coober Pedy, water-bomb diplomacy in Roxby, an Indigenous community visit in Kansas City, and a country-pub moment where a tough local pulled out spoons and joined the fun.

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