Omniprop was originally started to give a handful of Melbourne Uni Classics students the opportunity to indulge their histrionic ambitions, and actually muck about with some Greek and Roman plays instead of writing obsequious essays on them. In 2001 a group of students of the then school of fine arts, classical studies and archaeology concocted a plan to form a student society. In 2002, the group decided to staging a rough version of Lysistrata for the entertainment of students and staff of the school. The event was such a success that we decided to do it again next year with The Frogs, which ran for 3 nights and was staged at a lecture hall in Melbourne University. Admission was a gold coin at the door. At this point the entity "Omniprop Productions" came into existence, and with the support of Union House Theatre (and an anonymous benfactor) the group had its first chance to use things like lighting and sound equipment.
The event was a roaring success, dozens of staff, students and others came to see Helen Slaney's production of The Frogs, and we all agreed that public events such as these were a wonderful way of celebrating classical culture, and giving it a greater audience. So in 2004, we did it again! This time Terrence's Eunuch was the production. Featuring live music, (AND AN ACTUAL SET!!!!) again we upped the production values. Again the audience was rapturous, and again the show was a great success. By 2005 the university had cottoned on to what Omniprop was doing, and informed us that if we wanted to use the lecture hall again, we'd be charged as commercial hirers. This equated to nearly $3000 to stage a 2 night season and hold a single 4 hour dress rehearsal. In 2004. So Omniprop quickly moved into the 'real' theatre - The Guild theatre in the Union Building at Melbourne University. In 2005 we staged our first 'proper' theatre production. Euripides The Weird Plays was a double billing of the rarely performed Helen and Orestes by Euripides. And since that time Omniprop has produced at least one full scale production a year (sometimes more) at Melbourne University. The Guild has seen Omnoprop also perform new translations of: Senneca's Phaedra, The Clouds, The Bacchae and Mostellaria. And in 2008 Omniprop was very proud to participate in the Melbourne International Fringe Festival for the first time, performing a new translation of Aristophanes' Lysistrata Alongside our core program Omniprop has visited schools from University High to Bendigo Senior Secondary College performing plays and excerpts for students, giving them a chance to experience live drama. See our Theatre in Education section for more information.
