AustLit

'"Lottie" is a love story is set against a backdrop of Australia’s golden age of film – a story that is brought to life by stirring music and song.

'It’s about Lottie Lyell, Australia’s first silent film star. And it’s about her director, Raymond Longford, who is now considered one of the greatest film directors of all time. Longford and Lottie made such cinema classics as Mutiny on the Bounty, On our Selection, Dad and Dave, and of course The Sentimental Bloke.

'After years of meticulous research, writers Katy Forde and Aleathea Monsour uncovered the true story behind one of the best kept secrets of the Australian film industry: the passionate love affair between internationally acclaimed director Raymond Longford, and his leading lady, Lottie Lyell.

'Longford was a married man, and Lottie was a religious middle-class girl who did not believe in divorce.

'These star-crossed lovers were constricted by their own morals, and by the strict rules of their society. If their affair became public knowledge, they would have been ruined.

'But that’s not where the secrets end. The show also explores an even more explosive secret of Australia’s early film industry: Lottie was secretly co-directing and co-writing the films.

'This musical aims to honour the thrilling and tragic story of Lottie and Longford, and to bring their genius to light.'

Source: Musical Theatre Australia.