FORMER Rockhampton actor, director and writer, Wayne Blair and playwright Rachael Coopes have created a play that gives us a glimpse into a teenage Australia that feels like a foreign country.

Sugarland follows the lives of five teenagers, exploring a world of big responsibilities and simple pleasures, with complex issues and elusive solutions.

It gives audiences an insight into lives rarely seen on the Australian stage.

Produced by Australian Theatre for Young People, Australia's oldest and largest youth theatre company, Sugarland shows what life is like growing up in remote Australia.

Nina is 16-years-old, good at school, has a job at the cinema and has one of the best singing voices around.

But none of that is important. She needs a place to live. Living with her Aunty in an overcrowded house, things aren't going well and it's getting complicated. Erica is 16 and the new girl in town. Her Dad's in the RAAF and the family's just moved to Katherine. She's lived all over Australia and every time she makes somewhere home, she moves again.

She's so used to being an outsider she's stopped trying to fit in. The only thing they have in common is the music they listen to. Sometimes that's enough.

Playwrights Rachael Coopes and Wayne Blair spent over two months in a series of residencies in the town of Katherine in the Northern Territory with the aim of creating a play that would enable audiences to gain a personal understanding about life for young people in remote Australia.

IF YOU GO

Sugarland will be performed at the Pilbeam Theatre on Friday 22 April at 7.30pm.

Tickets Adult $49, Aged Pensioner $45. On sale now, phone 49274111 or go to seeitlive.com.au

PAY YOUR AGE: Theatregoers aged 26 and under can see the show for just $1 per year of age. Proof of age may be required.