One of the best things about Adelaide Fringe Festival is not just the variety of performances, but the diversity of performers from all ages and cultures. It was a pleasure to experience the hard work of the students from Actually Acting Youth Theatre in their double-bill performance of The Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon by Don Zolidis and Dennis Kelly’s DNA.

The Brothers Grimm were story collectors, and their library of over two hundred stories from German and European folklore have been the basis of many movies – notably those from Walt Disney, who sanitised and romanticised the often gruesome and unhappy tales into the stories we recognise today. That sterilisation of the folktales is a running joke in Don Zolidis’ compilation and reduction of the entire Grimm’s collection into an hour-long performance. The ensemble deliver the laughs whilst giving the audience great characters that are not just comedic caricatures. A tremendous show from everyone involved.

After the interval, the older students present a much darker piece of theatre called DNA, from writer Dennis Kelly (who wrote critically acclaimed Girls & Boys in 2022’s Adelaide Festival, as well as the book from Roald Dahl’s creation that became the Tim Minchin production of Matilda the Musical). This high school story of bullying gone horribly wrong was written in 2007 and became a staple for GCSE (Year 10) study in UK schools. All of the performers are believable as director Lauren Jones guides the transformation of their initial roles in the group after the accident. The emotion from the characters comes through these young performers brilliantly.

Grimm and DNA are a good combination for this double-bill from an amazing company of young casts and creatives.