Saturday July 25 7.30pm
Be careful what you wish for… Art wakes up one morning, five months on since we saw him last, counting his blessings as he lies next to Eve in a lovers’ embrace. His steady presence – along with his brother’s practical skills - has ensured the Far Out East is surviving, if not thriving. His relationship with his teenage son, Josh, has continued to develop and finally his long-awaited memoir, Gross National Happiness, is set to be launched at this year’s Writers’ Festival… what more could he hope for? Indeed everything is… PERFECT.
From the moment that word escapes from his lips, though, fate sets about delivering a series of obstacles to test Art’s newfound fulfilment. Thunder claps and tempests brew as Art and Vance’s fair-weather father – Gerry Watkins makes his way into town, shaking everything in his wake. Vance, still heart-weary over the loss of Melanie, invests all of his energies into keeping the Far Out East running.
Meanwhile Melanie renounces her worldly life in favour of an austere atonement – all in the interests of winning back Vance’s heart – or at least his body. Eve has had enough of her living arrangements with Art; tired of overnight bags and backpackers. She’s also exhausted with her job in council; and when her Conservation Act submission for the caravan park is overlooked for a potential sale, Eve’s left feeling stagnated. The situation is exacerbated when Art sidesteps her invitation to move in with her…So when Carter Smith walks into the Writers’ Festival and into Eve’s life, she’s more than a little tempted by his light green ideologies.
Writer: Deb Cox; Director: Stuart McDonald
