THEATRE DOUBLE BILL: MARTHA & ME / BEFORE SHE KNEW ME

Before She Knew Me: A Transformative Journey of Hope and Resilience 

The recent production of Before She Knew Me, a profoundly moving piece;based on a true story, delivers an intense yet remarkably uplifting theatrical experience. This powerful play, directed by Joachim Matschoss of BYTE (Backyard Theatre Ensemble) Melbourne, a testament to his sensitive, inclusive, open, and holistic process, which truly fosters theatre makers and creatives.

CAST:

KRYSTAL HOLLIS

Krystal is an actor and performer from Nelson, New Zealand. She graduated with a Bachelor of Performing Arts from Otago University in 2023 and moved to Melbourne in January 2024. Krystal has performed in a wide range of live theatre shows, musicals, short films, and web series. With a background in dance, music, and songwriting, she is a versatile performer with a deep passion for the stage. In addition to her performance work, Krystal is also a dance and drama teacher, sharing her love for the arts with children in schools around Melbourne. She is known for her music duo, Love From, and for being an active cast member and deputy venue manager of the improvised theatre show Alcotraz. Krystal will be playing the role of Martha in her first collaboration with BYTE in the new touring piece Martha and Me.

GEORGINA McKAY

Born and raised in Bangkok, Thailand, Georgina has been involved in many mediums of the performing arts.  She studied in Bangkok and got her first taste of the stage in productions such as Beauty and The Beast and Little Shop of Horrors. She was a stage manager and appeared in multiple theatre showcases throughout her teenage years and devising original work while studying IB Theatre Arts. Georgina learned ballet and contemporary dance at the Dance Center School of Performing Arts where she was a part of many performances, ranging from group to solo material. She also has been a member of Bangkok Aerial Space for 8 years, familiarizing herself with aerial silks and hoops, performing as a part of their team as well. She was also working under Rachadalai Theatre in 2020 as a supervisor for their summer camp. She helped monitor workshops while managing backstage during performances. She then took an acting course at the National Institute for Dramatic Arts in Sydney and completed a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Psychology at the University of Melbourne. Georgina collaborated with BYTE on the Shakespeare-mash-up Merry Wanderers of the Night. She will follow in 2025 with the mono drama before I knew her and the piece Martha and me. Two further BYTE pieces the apartment and waiting for otto are in early development. Georgina has also co-created and written a new piece, the reliability of memory, that will tour in 2027.

JOACHIM MATSCHOSS

Joachim originates from Germany and now lives in Melbourne. He is a playwright, poet, Theatre-maker and the Artistic Director of BYTE. He has created theatre in Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, India, Uzbekistan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Hungary, Taiwan, Switzerland and China. His poetry is published in Australia, Germany, the United Kingdom and the USA. In recent years Joachim has worked with street kids and underprivileged youth in Jakarta/Indonesia. He was involved in a performance project dealing with Human Rights and a project about racial harmony in Germany. Joachim wrote and directed over 50 productions for BYTE and enjoys the collaboration with other artists.

Joachim published a travel journal in Australia, away with me and a novel in the USA, Dead River Oaks. A book about theatre and travel, Rain Overnight was published in India. More recent collections of poetry include Travel with Myself, Sidewalk Theatre, dew on mornings. past, stolpersteine and in 2023: The value of things. In 2025 his collected plays and the town square have been published, in the USA and India respectively.