Belloo Creative’s new production Back to Bilo retells the household story of a Tamil family’s battle to stay in a regional Queensland town.
Opinionated and unapologetic, the production gets up close and personal with the Murugappan family during their four gruelling years in immigration detention limbo while their community fought for their asylum.
Director Katherine Lyall-Watson consulted the family during the production, allowing the opening scenes to convey the harsh realities of the Sri Lankan civil war.
After the war ended in 2009, Nades and Priya Murugappan both left their home nation to build a new life in Biloela where they met and were married in 2014.
In typical small-town fashion, the community welcomed the couple with open arms as their two daughters, both born in Australia, found playmates immediately.
But in 2018, border force whisked the family away to detention, sparking a media frenzy.
The play openly challenged Australia’s immigration system, as disease and neglect gripped the family, while the five versatile actors caricatured the politicians involved in the high-profile debate.
But what the seventy-minute performance captured best was the persistence of Priya, Nades and their Biloela community, as the Federal Department of Home Affairs eventually returned the family to regional Queensland in 2022.
Lyall-Watson said that without consulting Nades and Priya Murugappan during production, she would not have done justice to their story.
“Priya especially is so pleased with the play because it speaks up for other immigrants,” she said.
“Back to Bilo might not change people’s minds if they’re already anti-immigration, but we hope it raises awareness for those who haven’t thought about the issue.”
“So far, our audiences have had a great deal of conversations our performances.”
The performance premiered at Queensland Theatre during Brisbane Festival, Australia’s largest international arts showcase held biennially.
