Therapy - Original, Local Music Hitting National Stage

Joining cults and announcing intrusive thoughts

True crime fun-facts, realising you joined a cult and boldly announcing your intrusive thoughts. Yeah - we sing about these things.

After a sold-out, award-winning season at Dunedin Fringe, original musical THERAPY is getting ready to go on tour in 2025. The show, written by Chelsea McRae, Mario Sadra-de Jong and Cody McRae was developed in 2023 with support from the University of Otago.

THERAPY follows a woman’s reluctant visits to a therapist’s office, exploring grief, trauma and the embarrassment of being human through comedic song.

In preparation for the 2025 tour to New Zealand Fringe and further North Island destinations, it is being staged for one night only as a fundraiser.

Based on true events, McRae says the show is an open letter to those who have experienced the impacts of suicide and dedicated to the memory of her late father who lost his life in 2006.

“Sharing this story with audiences is hard to describe. We’ve had amazing responses from them, sharing their own mental health journeys and subsequent positive changes after seeing our show. It’s an absolute honour to have our musical making real-world differences to people’s lives.”

The show debuted at Dunedin Fringe earlier this year, selling out all three shows, receiving nominees for Best in Comedy and Best in Fringe, and winning the NZ Fringe Touring Award. It then went on to have a sell-out season at Little Andromeda in Christchurch. THERAPY begins its tour at BATS Theatre in Wellington next March.

Content warning: The show does discuss sexual assault, suicide and uses strong language, and is recommended R13.

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