Famished Future Feeders

Robert The Cat (RTC) is a theatre collective headed by directors Lisa O’Neill and Anatoly Frusin. For over two decades they have had the fortune of working with apprentice actors in their acting and performance degree program at TAFE Queensland in partnership with the University of Canberra, staging work marked by an emotional intensity, physicality and theatricality.

The RTC collective has been established to provide their graduate artists further opportunities to develop and stage new work as performers, writers and makers in challenging contemporary theatre. Productions include Love & Information by Caryl Churchill (2019), Flat Out Like A Lizard by Norman Price (2020), Sunny Tribe District by Patrick Mu’a (2022), and the 2024 premier of Famished Future Feeders by Jules Broun. 

Lisa O’Neill is a performing arts practitioner, director and educator. She has developed a broad body of original performance works over the past three decades, presenting across Australia, United Kingdom, Europe, Asia, New Zealand and United States of America.

A polymath of sorts working across dance, theatre, contemporary performance and digital arts, Lisa has presented new media art installations in the Forbidden City of Beijing, performed Off Broadway in one of Australia’s longest running children’s show Fluff, danced at the Sydney Opera House on numerous occasions and acted in Shakespeare and Greek Tragedies in castles and ruins across Europe.

For over two decades Lisa has directed the acting program at TAFE Queensland in partnership with the University of Canberra, maintaining a culture of practice that extends far beyond the student’s formal studies with graduates invited to work on projects with the alumni theatre collective Robert The Cat.

Anatoly Frusin is a theatre director and acting teacher. Born in the Soviet Union and raised in New Zealand, he graduated from the University of Auckland with a Masters in English Literature, and continued his studies at the Drama Centre, University of Toronto.

In 1996 he completed the Directing course at the National Institute of Dramatic Arts in Directing, and then worked as Neil Armfield’s assistant at Belvoir Street Theatre in Sydney and Opera Australia and other opera companies; as well as directing many independent productions.

His collaborations with Polish based Kropka Theatre have been seen at festivals all over Europe and the Middle East, and have been widely awarded. He is currently a lecturer with the Bachelor of Acting, Drama and Performance at TAFE Queensland in partnership with the University of Canberra, as well as working in the industry in theatre and cross-genre collaborative projects.

Jules Broun (she/they) is a Queensland-based actor, writer, filmmaker and theatre practitioner. Graduating with a Bachelor of Creative Industries (Acting and Performance) from the University of Canberra/TAFE Queensland in 2021, her first play Valour Victory Virtue (2019) resulted from a Critical Performance unit.

She has since collaborated with Georgia Politakis on Hey, You (2023) for La Mama Explorations as well as Observatory Theatre in the creative development of new works. Recent stage credits include an understudy in mIxED productions’ Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons (2023); and leads in Observatory Theatre’s Picnic at Hanging Rock (2023).

She was also in the main cast of Roll for Role’s Strixhaven (2022) Dungeons & Dragons live play; has provided motion-capture for Fika Entertainment in Mattel’s American Girl Designer House (2022) and Teletubbies Let’s Go (2022-23); and been with the Humphrey B. Bear performance team for OZPIX Entertainment since 2021.

Passionate about both the art of acting and the joys of fatherhood, Milan is a versatile actor who brings depth, authenticity, and a unique perspective to every role. On and off the stage, Milan is a loving father, and this real-life experience enriches their portrayal of characters and their ability to explore the human condition.

Having completed a Bachelor in Acting and Performance with TAFE Queensland in partnership with the University of Canberra in 2019, Milan has since used his acquired knowledge and skill to perform in a plethora of productions and companies. Most recently Milan had the opportunity to apprentice for the Queensland Shakespeare Ensemble in 2022, performing in The Rover by Aphra Behn and directed by Rebecca Murphy.

Through his work with QSE and other theatre companies, Milan has been able to keep an ear to the ground and find consistent work with alumni from Robert the Cat and TAFE Queensland Acting alike.

Over several years, Brisbane based live theatre performer/creator/writer John Ford has brought his unique brand of talent to light. With the completion of his Bachelor of Creative Industries (Acting and Performance) in 2020 through the University of Canberra & TAFE Queensland, John is dedicated to presenting theatre that challenges and stimulates audiences through refined wit and dark humour.

He has performed in a plethora of stage productions that range from timely classics to modern-contemporary. Works include Mike Bartlett’s Earthquakes in London as Robert, Tennessee William’s Camino Real as Marguerite and Shakespeare’s well recognised As you Like It as Audrey, to name a few. An end is only a beginning in disguise.

Peter Hatton is an emerging performer, passionate about the many possibilities of theatre and production. Dramatic works have become an area of keen interest for Peter, as he is drawn to theatre that seeks to provoke its audience, and is daring and experimental. 

Peter has come to use performance as a tool for understanding the world around him and hopes to ignite change at a personal as well as social level. Since graduating in 2022 with a Bachelor of Creative Industries (Acting and Performance) with TAFE Queensland in partnership with the University of Canberra, Peter has taken part in the La Boite 2023 Ambassadors Program as an actor, and most recently has been contracted to work with Shake & Stir’s educational program which finds him assisting in the operation of after school drama classes

Peta is an actor, artist and arts worker, who finds inspiration in the transformation that performance inspires in both the artist and audience.  After graduating from the University of Canberra and TAFE Queensland Bachelor of Acting and Performance in 2020, Peta has gone on to pursue mentorship in production and development with Metro Arts, building new skillsets and delving deep into the local arts community.

Peta is passionate about exploring multidisciplinary crossovers in storytelling through performance and illustration work. Invested in collaborative practice, Peta is elated to be working with this exceptional ensemble brought together by Robert the Cat

Lachlan Orton is a young actor from Brisbane graduating in 2021 with a Bachelor of Creative Industries (Acting and Performance) from TAFE Queensland in partnership with the University of Canberra.

Most recently he performed with WILD THEATRE in Dennis Kelly’s Orphans at BackDock Arts in 2022. Lachlan has an interest in dark physical comedy, a desire to explore the unconventional and a willingness to dive head first into new and challenging works. Lachlan loves spending time with his cat, Wrex, whose hobbies include; eating, napping, and being a handsome little man – much like his owner.

Georgina Sawyer is an Australian actor and singer. Since graduating with a bachelor’s degree in acting from the University of Canberra and TAFE Queensland in 2022, she has worked briefly on sets with Universal Television and Heyday Films. Further, she has diligently advanced her acting skills after being accepted into an online short course with London’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. As a writer and producer, her short film Calaboose intends to challenge the audience’s preconceptions of harmful relationships.

Aaron is a young actor with a passion for developing characters for the theatrical stage. He is primarily interested in the use of the voice and body in performance, and how the verbal and non-verbal forms of communication collaborate to express emotions, character, and tell a story. He believes theatre is a realisation of human behaviour throughout society, and is the way in which we learn about ourselves and others. 

Aaron has completed a Bachelor of Creative Industries (Acting and Performance) at TAFE Queensland in partnership with the University of Canberra. Production credits include: Bootcamp 14 (2020), As You Like It (2021), The Testament of this Day (2022), The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged, Revised, Again; Seascape with Sharks and Dancer, and original work Killing Quality for AnyWhere Festival (2023). Other credits include: Film and voice work with Successful Graduate (2021), Spotify voiceover commercial with TAFE Queensland (2021-2022).

Geoff Squires is a lighting designer, and has lost count of the number of shows he has lit. Over the course of his career he has been resident designer for Acronym Theatre Company, and Trocadero Productions. As a freelance designer he has worked with QUT, Playlab, Expressions Dance Company, Queensland Theatre, La Boite Theatre and Queensland Dance School of Excellence. 

He has toured shows to Israel, Wales, London, Netherlands, New York, New Zealand, and Singapore as well as extensively around Australia. Geoff taught Technical Theatre at South-bank TAFE and Canberra University, and has lit all of their end of semester shows for the last fifteen years. He also runs his own design, hire and production business, Pro-Nel Lighting. Geoff received a MATILDA Commendation 2000 for Lighting Design, a MATILDA BACKSTAGE AWARD Commendation 2001 for Sustained Contribution to Theatre and a MATILDA AWARD for Lighting Design for INSIDE OUT 2019.