The Dapto Chaser
Playwright : Mary Rachel Brown
Director : Anna Houston
Ensemble Theatre, Kirribilli
29 June – 25 July, 2026
Next time someone tells you Australia has no culture, point them to The Dapto Chaser, currently playing at the Ensemble, the only theatre in Sydney boasting glorious water views. This laugh-aloud funny, yet moving, play by Mary Rachel Brown is an instant crowd-pleaser. With a cast of just four men and a dog that’s not really there, director Anna Houston takes us to the heart of Australiana: Dapto and its greyhound racetrack.
The Sinclair family have quite a reputation in Dapto after years of gambling (and cheating) by the patriarch, Errol (Peter Carroll). His sons Jimmy (André de Vany) and Cess (Justin Rosniak) have no other option than to get involved in greyhound racing, more reluctantly for Jimmy, who works for racing magnate Arnold (Marco Chiappi), than for Cess, who seems to have a natural talent with dogs. When money becomes tight, decisions have to be made and the brothers’ flickering bond is put to the test.
Rare are the plays where the script is as strong as its delivery. Sometimes you marvel at the words but the performance is inadequate or vice versa: the acting is top-notch despite a lack of substance. But with The Dapto Chaser, you get both. A solid story with four fully-fleshed male characters – interestingly, written and directed by women – played by four outstanding actors who keep stealing the show from each other.
Anna Houston’s observation that Brown had a natural gift for capturing “boisterous, frequently hilarious male voices” that often reveal vulnerability is spot on. While there are many plot twists, frustrations, hopes and regrets, it is the one-liners that command the audience’s attention. Never have I seen a play with so many hilarious lines. The audience learns to expect them, which creates a wonderful sense of connection with what are just fictional characters. I won’t spoil any of the one-liners by quoting them but you’ll know exactly what I mean when you attend this impressive performance.
The show is ninety minutes long but time passes as fast as the greyhounds galloping in the background. There is never a dull moment and the pace is intense without feeling rushed. Houston’s clever use of the space takes us all over Dapto despite the constraints of a very small stage.
As a dog lover, I did not expect to love a play about dog racing. But behind the sharp humour and ocker accents lies what makes us Aussies: good intentions and a whole lot of heart.
