Luna is, literally, a girl who glows. She's not sure she likes this - it leads to her getting teased at school. And it means she's all too aware that the world is getting a little bit darker every day - her glow is becoming even more apparent. The adults are pretending the increasing darkness isn't happening, but it is. What can she do to stop it?
The Girl Who Glows is an original musical devised by Zeeko - a band comprising Jess Green (also known as Jess 1, who is female), Jess Ciampa ( Jess 2, who is male) and David Hewitt - and writer and director Jo Turner.
Green said the show was "part pop concert, part audio-visual playground".
It combines music, singing, storytelling, puppeteering and audiovisual elements to bring Luna's world to life. And there's even a bit of audience participation.
The darkness is a metaphor for climate change.
It's not a diatribe, though.
Turner said while the show had a philosophical side, about the future of the planet and the world children will be inheriting, it was in the context of a family show.
Green said that while it was important to highlight society's inadequate response to climate change, the main aim here was "to write a playful work for children and encourage them to be connected to imagination and ideas" as well as reconnect adults with a sense of wonder.
Luna's quest to find a way to stop the darkness is, Green said, "a journey about light and a classic hero's journey, fighting the darkness".
The girl who glows travels through "a wonderland of phosphorescence" where she's not the only shining light - there are fireflies, glow worms, glowing mushrooms and glowing sea creatures.
Luna also encounters other creatures including a rapping platypus (Mono extreme), jellyfish, an operatic tortoise frog and mystical curlews. But can Luna finish the story herself or will she need help?
Green is going to voice Luna throughout and her bandmates will portray the other characters. At one point she'll be conversing with herself.
"Girl Jess will talk to Luna."
They'll have a busy time on stage - speaking, singing and playing instruments, in ones, twos and threes.
The band members were inspired by reading Julia Baird's book Phosphorous, about the phenomenon of bioluminescence in nature.
Designer Kathleen Kershaw created the settings, props and characters, Green said.
"What we wanted to do was have it look like kids could do this at home."
One of the key materials was long plastic rope with LED lighting from Bunnings, used to make the glowing puppets that are an essential element of the show.
Sydney writer, director and actor Turner had had a long career in theatre, both for adults and children. He directed the Australian production of The Graduate starring Jerry Hall as Mrs Robinson and has acted on stage and screens large and small, His previous credits writing and directing children's theatre include another puppet-based show, Ruby's Wish.
The members of Zeeko came to Turner with the concept of the show and he worked with them to turn it into a play with songs, their first scripted stage production.
The musical trio's name, Zeeko, doesn't mean anything, Green said.
"It's fun to say."
Zeeko have worked together for 15 years, touring with the Musica Viva schools program.
Ciampa and Hewitt are classically trained percussionists who also work in the classical music world and Green, a third-generation Canberran, studied guitar and voice in the ANU School of Music's jazz department.
She's taught in schools and has a program, Girls Jazz+, to promote gender diversity in the genre.
Green also has a pop music pseudonym, Pheno - short for phenomena.
"It's a recurring theme - phenomena in nature."
She is co-writing another musical but won't forget The Girl Who Glows.
"We're hoping to tour it."
- The Girl Who Glows is on at The Street Theatre from July 18 to 21 at various times. Recommended for family and children aged from five to 11. See: thestreet.org.au.
