In Conversation with Leah Robyn – UP THERE (Boorloo)
In this edition of In Conversation, we shine a light on UP THERE (Boorloo) by the UP THERE Walking Tour, showing from 4 to 22 November. UP THERE (Boorloo) is a walking tour that takes you on a journey of vacant spaces and hidden stories. We caught up with Leah Robyn to dive into the creative process behind the work and what audiences can expect from this thrilling new production.
What motivated you to apply to be part of The Blue Room Theatre’s 2025 season, and what drew you to this project?
UP THERE (Boorloo) is the second iteration in our award-winning series, but Boorloo CBD is the original inspiration. The UP THERE Collective live and work around the Boorloo CBD, and so the original concept of the show was inspired by the empty and underutilised spaces on the second floors of the city. Coming back to the original idea was what drew us to this project with The Blue Room Theatre. This city has the most retail vacancies in the country, UP THERE (Boorloo) aims to bring these spaces to life again through stories told by the community.
Moreover, The Blue Room Theatre is an institution that champions indie theatre and the Boorloo community as a whole. This work relies on connecting with and advocating for this community so teaming up with TBRT just made sense.
How has the creative journey been so far—from concept development to rehearsals?
The creative process for UP THERE (Boorloo) has been similar to that of our last show: UP THERE (Walyalup). We are lucky in that the show is aided by the community, who share their stories with us and recommend more people for us to talk to. Another wonderful aspect of creating this show is that it allows us to rediscover the city we thought we knew. The process includes a lot of walking around the city, investigating areas that we’ve never been to, and really taking it all in.
What has stood out to you during the rehearsal process—any unexpected discoveries or moments of growth?
One of our interviewees was a politician who asked us to meet him in Parliament House for the recorded interview. I’ve never been to Parliament House before, and was honestly shocked that they were open to being interviewed there, especially by us little guys. It was lovely to see how some people in positions of power genuinely care about the CBD and want to help artists drive change.
How has the collaboration with your cast, crew, and creatives shaped the work and your vision for it?
What’s interesting about this production is that the cast is the community. They are speaking their stories throughout the show, and they shape the work.
When we first began researching for UP THERE (Boorloo), we knew straight away it was going to have a different feel to our show in Walyalup. The Boorloo CBD is more corporate and commercial than Walyalup’s laidback, coastal vibe.
What we hadn’t realised until the stories started flooding in was the grungy underground scenes the city has.
Much of Boorloo CBD is hidden, and it’s been amazing to bring these hidden stories to life.
As you move closer to opening, what are you most excited—or even nervous—about sharing with audiences?
Everything in this show is a real story from a real person in the Boorloo community. It is our responsibility to hold these stories and present them in a way that is unique and true for each person. We can’t possibly represent all the feelings and opinions of everyone in the CBD, but we have really tried to interview a range of people, from shop owners to politicians to historians and longtime residents of the CBD.
The work is also in a public space, so what happens from one performance to the next can shift quite significantly, and we won’t really see that start to happen until we have an audience. How people respond to a group of 20 people walking around the city with silent disco headphones, and how those people respond to the everyday happenings around them.
Image by William Gammel