RUBY’S WISH tells the beguiling story of Ruby, a little girl who believes in wishes, but not fairytales. Having spent most of her childhood in a hospital bed, Ruby has grown up far too fast, but when a tongue-tied clown doctor visits she will find a way to use her greatest gift – her imagination.

As we watch the two misfits – ailing child and awkward clown – create a fantasy world of mop monsters, bed caves and imaginary paper friends, we are drawn into Ruby’s bittersweet life, and come to see that imagination can make almost anything come true. 

Combining puppetry, comedy, animation, beatbox and clowning, this magical story which transcends generations and proves there is no harm in believing is playing at Riverside Theatres from 25th to 26th May. 

SAG had a chance to chat to star Adriano Cappelletta who, along with Holly Austin and Alice Osborne, directed by Jo Turner, bring RUBY’S WISH to life.

SAG: With the show opening in Melbourne in a few days, thanks so much for making the time to talk with us.  Let’s start at the beginning. Who is Ruby and why doesn’t she believe in fairytales?

Cappelletta: Ruby is a 7 year old girl. She’s likes Sia, Katy Perry and Jamie XX and is a regular little girl, except when we meet her she is in hospital. She has been raised by her single Dad, who is practical and more of a realist. She does however have a burning wish and she’s doing everything practical to make it happen…except letting her imagination run wild, that is until she meets Dot.

SAG: Where did Ruby … and Dot, an awkward clown … come from?
Cappelletta: Holly and I worked in children’s hospitals for many years as a Captain Starlight entertaining children and their families. We have seen first hand the journeys families go through when a child is diagnosed with a life-threatening illness.

When Holly was working at Westmead Children’s Hospital she met an extraordinary girl called Ava. She asked her one day live on Starlight TV what the tooth fairy did with all the teeth. She then gave an answer that only an 8 year old can. It was imaginative, touching, honest and captivating. This story was the spring board for Ruby’s Wish, and Ava’s tooth story almost word for word sits in the final show today.

We wanted to make a story that reflected all the joyous and transformative experiences we’ve had working with children and their families in hospitals over ten years. When a child is sick, the whole family is affected and hospitals can sometimes be scary places -and the healing power of laughter and play can make the journey brighter.

We all need a reminder to be a kid and not take things so seriously, because sometimes that can open up a new world and a new way of looking at life.

SAG: This is true for Ruby’s dad too.  You play a man  we don’t often see truthfully represented on stage, what is it about Ruby’s Dad that you love the most?

Cappelletta: Ruby’s dad, Marco, is a single Dad who is always by his daughter’s side. He has a lot on his plate, running his own business and having a sick child.

During my experience working in children’s hospitals I have met Dads who have been on the journey with their kids every step of the way and they will do anything for  them, to give them a sense of stability or just simply to make them smile.

Ruby’s Dad is a practical guy who works much too hard and likes things to make sense. He doesn’t believe in wishes and is more of a realist. But through the life-changing experience of dealing with a sick child and meeting the clown Doctor, Dr Audio-Yo he learns to let go, to live with lightness and to dare to dream and imagine.

I love that he loves his daughter so much, he’s willing to let go of his fixed ideas and open the door to new possibilities. I’m Italian, so I don’t believe that men can’t be emotional. I think when a man is truly vulnerable, that is when he is most powerful. We see Ruby’s Dad become totally lost at sea, and when he is at his lowest, that is when he reaches the stars…literally!

SAG:  And brought together with such joy and with engaging  variety.  There’s such a curated range of theatre forms that you and Holly and Alice use in the production. Was that always part of the mix or did it develop through the rehearsal process with Jo?

Cappelletta: We go to the theatre to watch a ‘play’ and this is exactly what we did to make RUBY’S WISH.  As Cubbyhouse Co (Holly, Adriano and Jo) we have always set out to make complex, rich and playful work and to communicate our ideas in the most imaginative and visually compelling ways.

Holly and I have studied with clown masters in France (Philippe Gaulier) and Switzerland (Pierre Byland) and Jo studied at Le Coq in Paris, so we all share a similar theatrical language and have always devised our own work. As we developed the story of RUBY’S WISH we peeled back the layers and discovered that it required multiple forms to tell the story as it’s always shifting from reality to fantasy.

We teamed up with animators, puppeteers, musicians and tech designers and devised the show over an extended period of creative developments. The result is a show that combines puppetry, animation, clowning, beat-boxing, soundscapes and a world first wireless looping magic jacket! It has to be seen to be believed!

SAG:  The magic jacket sounds way cool and I can’t wait to see the show when it lands here in Sydney.  What do you want children to leave the theatre with from the show? And what about the adults?

Cappelletta: As a collective we often say that our first show Cubbyhouse was a kids show for adults and RUBY’S WISH is an adult show for kids. I think RUBY’S WISH is truly a show for everyone and often we have kids laughing at something silly or wowed by the magic looping jacket while an adult is weeping in the same moment because they’ve sensed the gravity of something in the story.

It’s a really delicate balance to strike but is very powerful and rewarding. RUBY’S WISH is essentially about the importance of imagination and play in making your dreams come true and living a full life. I think this is essential for 6 – 106 year old.

I hope everyone is struck by the sheer humanity of the story and its love of life.

More information about RUBY’S WISH is available at the Riverside Theatres website and you can see a video teaser of the production at Vimeo.