The Orphic Wise Lady Society, or OWLS, are Melbourne's foremost protector against the extraterrestrial, the supernatural and general all-round nasty pasties. Can our heroes Bev and Myrt save Melbourne from a technological nightmare?
Photo: Mark Gambino
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Bev and Myrt and the Scrolling of Doom is a fun, comedic adventure that celebrates the importance of our unsung, elder queer heroes. They are the people who raised us, fought for us, and saved the day. Bev (Jenny Lovell) and Myrt (Amanda Owen) are Melbourne's senior she-roes: alien investigators who defend our city from extraterrestrial, supernatural, and other nasty threats. In this adventure, a brand-new mobile phone server is secretly absorbing people's brains to create the ultimate artificial intelligence. Can our beloved duo stop the minds of millions from being wiped by The Feed?
HISTORY This show has been a pet project for writer David Innes (he/him) for some time. He loved action-packed theatre with movement, such as 37 by Nathan Maynard and North by Northwest by Carolyn Burns. Having cut his teeth on writing festival shows as part of Innes Lloyd, he wanted to try and create an action adventure that dealt with queer themes, especially for queer people of an older age. Early in 2025, he teamed up with old friend and impro chum Dr Stayci Taylor to produce a work that would be an action adventure play and push the envelope as to what can be expected at Midsumma. |
THE CHARACTERS
Beverley "Bev" McIntyre is a people-person. She knows how to infiltrate top secret businesses and uses her elite baking skills to persuade. She and wife Myrtle have had many escapades saving the good citizens of Melbourne from all sorts of nasty creatures. Beverley is a gentle soul who loves a natter, a biscuit and comfortable seat. In this production, she is played by Jenny Lovell.
Myrtle "Myrt" Rose is a boffin. She has been described as having a 'permanent frown of calculation' upon her brow. She is the gadget master and the technobabble spouter. When there's a technical hitch, she knows how to solve it. After thirty plus years, she is still very much in love with her wife Bev and together they have raised a delightfully clever son Jamie. In this production, she is played by Amanda Owen.
Jamie Rose is Myrt's biological son (and Bev's step-son). He is a senior analyst at the Bureau of Meteorology and has an incredible knack for rapidly solving mathematical problems mentally. He is very much his mother's son and often the two will clash due to their similarity. Jamie has a terrible dating record and has reached a point in his life where he's desparate to find the "one". In this production, he is played by Jackson Eather.
Beverley "Bev" McIntyre is a people-person. She knows how to infiltrate top secret businesses and uses her elite baking skills to persuade. She and wife Myrtle have had many escapades saving the good citizens of Melbourne from all sorts of nasty creatures. Beverley is a gentle soul who loves a natter, a biscuit and comfortable seat. In this production, she is played by Jenny Lovell.
Myrtle "Myrt" Rose is a boffin. She has been described as having a 'permanent frown of calculation' upon her brow. She is the gadget master and the technobabble spouter. When there's a technical hitch, she knows how to solve it. After thirty plus years, she is still very much in love with her wife Bev and together they have raised a delightfully clever son Jamie. In this production, she is played by Amanda Owen.
Jamie Rose is Myrt's biological son (and Bev's step-son). He is a senior analyst at the Bureau of Meteorology and has an incredible knack for rapidly solving mathematical problems mentally. He is very much his mother's son and often the two will clash due to their similarity. Jamie has a terrible dating record and has reached a point in his life where he's desparate to find the "one". In this production, he is played by Jackson Eather.
REVIEWS
"It would be easy to fall into all shenanigans and no substance in a show like this (especially given the short runtime) but I’m happy to report that wasn’t the case. ‘Bev & Myrt’ was fun all the way through, but it was the moments of queer love that resonated so personally in an otherwise unworldly story. It was at heart a celebration of our elder queer heroes: the people who loved and fought for us and the people we can hope to become ourselves—aliens or no." ★★★★★ - What's The Show
"It would be easy to fall into all shenanigans and no substance in a show like this (especially given the short runtime) but I’m happy to report that wasn’t the case. ‘Bev & Myrt’ was fun all the way through, but it was the moments of queer love that resonated so personally in an otherwise unworldly story. It was at heart a celebration of our elder queer heroes: the people who loved and fought for us and the people we can hope to become ourselves—aliens or no." ★★★★★ - What's The Show