'Straight to the pool room': Film classic The Castle goes on stage

To mark 30 years since The Castle first endeared itself to audiences, the classic Australian film is being launched as a stage production. The film is responsible for oft-quoted lines such as "How's the serenity?" and "It's the vibe" — and it can only be hoped that the stage version will have the vibe of the much-loved feature. The tale of the Kerrigan family and the battle to save their home from an airport expansion will premiere at Melbourne's Her Majesty's Theatre in March 2027. The stage adaptation has been penned by Rob Sitch, Tom Gleisner, Santo Cilauro and Jane Kennedy of the Working Dog production company, the four who wrote the original film. The friends have been wanting to turn it into a live stage show for decades, they said in a statement. "We wrote this new, fully updated show in the same way that we wrote the film screenplay all those years ago — the four of us in a room trying to make each other laugh." They promised the stage show would be not just a retelling, but a celebration of the Kerrigan family that includes a quarter of a century's worth of funny updates. One can only wonder what Darryl Kerrigan and his family would make of the internet, mobile phones and the building of a third runway at Melbourne Airport. "When the team at Working Dog first approached me about bringing The Castle to the stage, I knew we had to do this," producer Michael Cassel said. "The film miraculously captures the specificities of Australian life and yet feels so universally true; family love, the challenges change presents, and the warmth and humour and dignity of ordinary people standing up for what matters." The production will be directed by Heartbreak High and Fangirls director Paige Rattray, with set and costume design by Jonathon Oxlade. AAP