I’ll take the chicken, but I have ZERO beef with Fly Girl!
Inspired by the true story of Deborah Lawrie, Australia’s first female commercial airline pilot, Fly Girl hits new heights as a clever, heartfelt and joyously funny but important retelling of one woman’s fight to get off the ground in an era when airlines thought “the fairer sex” should serve the nuts, not fly the planes.
The Ensemble Theatre’s intimate setting is the perfect launchpad. The set bursts with 70s orange, jet-age charm and a black flight tracker hanging centre stage. We’re greeted by flight attendants in high-waisted orange trousers, pinstriped shirts and iconic caps who usher us to our seats with perfect period poise and playful improvisation. The energy before take-off is pure fun; bright, bustling, and buzzing with anticipation.
Writers and performers Genevieve Hegney and Catherine Moore open the evening by announcing we can expect 40 characters, 5 actors and “not one stage crew.” They aren’t kidding. The entire cast (including Cleo Meinck as Deb, Emma Palmer, Alex Kirwan, and the writers themselves) morph seamlessly between roles, each transformation part of the fabric of the storytelling. Props shift and scenes change in full view, yet it never breaks the rhythm. If anything, it adds to the show’s theatrical charm, blending quick wit and creative ingenuity into narrative flow.
We meet Deb as a determined teen, inspired by her dad’s love of flying. By her early twenties, she’s applying to Ansett, only to discover that no amount of skill will outweigh a hiring policy drenched in sexism. Reg Ansett, rendered here with delicious absurdity, dismisses women as “unsuitable” for flying due to supposedly unpredictable “female issues.” Deb persists, taking on Ansett with a David and Goliath style battle, helped along by the sisterhood collectively engaging in the “Girlcott” of 1979.
The jokes hit hard and fast, weaponising humour to expose the absurdity of systemic discrimination. Real headlines are seen on the prop newspapers including “Pregnancy! Is it a disease?”, echoing the playground logic of the airline’s defence. Amid the laughter, the truth stings. For all its sparkle and comic verve, Fly Girl packs emotional punch.
The cast’s chemistry is electric, their comic timing impeccable, and their energy infectious. The audience was audibly along for the ride, laughter giving way to silent tears as history reasserted its gravity. I overheard someone in the bathroom talking about remembering the whole situation as it was happening and what an amazing experience it was to now watch the show. The hardest emotional landing comes when Lawrie herself joins the cast onstage for curtain call with her solicitor from the landmark anti-discrimination case; a moment that reduced already standing ovation to more applause and greater sobs.
Director Janine Watson keeps the tone perfectly balanced; funny yet furious, heartfelt and powerful. Fly Girl is theatre that entertains first, then quietly takes flight as something greater: a tribute to resilience, equality, and one woman’s fight that changed the course of Australian history.
Fasten your seat-belts… this one soars.
To book tickets to Fly Girl, please visit https://www.ensemble.com.au/shows/fly-girl/.
Photographer: Prudence Upton
