Man In The Middle

Synopsis:

The Julian Assange story, from the time of the making of the ‘Collateral Murder’ video, through the rape charges and onto the time, 16 months later, when he is facing espionage charges and a potential death penalty.

With a cast of 8 playing 30 characters – ranging from the likes of David Cameron and Barack Obama through to Geoffrey Robertson, Kathy Lette and Mark Zuckerberg – this kaleidoscopic vision of one man’s dangerously quixotic tilt at the powers that be is played out on a massive, fast-moving canvas that has us questioning the very meaning of truth.

Character Breakdown:

The play is an eight-hander:  6 males, 2 females.
JULIAN ASSANGE
MARK STEPHENS
DMITRY MEDVEDEV
SWEDISH DELEGATE (female)
MISS A (Anna Ardin)
MISS W (Sofia Wilen)
DAVID CAMERON
MARK ZUCKERBERG
PHOTOGRAPHER
GEOFFREY ROBERTSON
KATHY LETTE
BARACK OBAMA
MALCOLM
JULIA GILLARD
TIM MATHIESON
RICHARD STENGEL
PRIVATE BRADLEY MANNING
US MILITARY INTERROGATOR (female)
MP
DANIEL DOMSCHEIT-BERG
MISS X
DANIEL ASSANGE (Julian’s son)
CHRISTINE ASSANGE (J’s mother)
MARK BERKOFF
TAILOR (female)
ERIC J. HOLDER JR
MASSEUSE
ANDREW O’HAGAN
GARETH PEIRCE (female)
VOICE (female)

Running-time:  2 hours + 15 minute interval

Production History:

World Premiere at The Seymour Centre, Sydney (York Theatre) 2011 under the title ‘Stainless Steel Rat’.
Theatre 503, London, 2012 under the title ‘Man In The Middle’

Publication:
Australian Playscripts, 2015

Awards:  Nominated for AWGIE for Best Stage Play 2012

Reviews:

“.. a comic polemic.. pithy one-liners.. outrageously funny.. the comedy (and there are plenty of laugh-out-loud moments) is fresh and appealing.”
Alison Rourke
The Guardian
1 July 2011

“..  a portrayal which manages the acrobatic feat of fashioning something serious out of laugh-a-minute cartoonery.. many delicious twists and turns.. Ron Elisha loves a good one-liner, and he’s exceptionally good at coming up with them.. entertaining and thought-provoking..”
Diana Simmonds
Stage Noise
1 July 2011

“.. intriguing and quite riveting.. well worth a visit..”
Peter Brown
London Theatre

“.. It is rare to see a playwright tussle in such detail with a story still in flux..  Assange is in the middle of this story, and this production brings him rather brilliantly to life.”
Stewart Pringle
Exeunt Magazine

“.. a fairground waltzer of a ride through the turbulent recent life and digital times of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, which whizzes around the globe and pulls its own focus with merry abandon.. there can be no disputing Elisha’s ambition or the brio of his approach..”
The London Evening Standard

“.. a script full of biting wit.. which carefully manoeuvres around a concrete judgement or conclusion..  I am seriously considering viewing this production a second time as the script is so full of ideas and opinions that the audience is, ironically, given almost too much information.”
Amy Yorston
British Theatre Guide

Excerpt available for download for free.