Pursued By Bear’s First Date cast announced

The stars of First Date

Following the success of their recent production of tick, tick…BOOM!, Pursued by Bear will present the professional Australian premiere of recent Broadway musical, First Date, in Melbourne this September.

A show for anyone who has ever experienced the awkwardness, undeniable thrill or absolute trauma of a blind set-up, the setting of Pursued By Bear’s First Date has been moved from New York to the streets of Melbourne.

When dating rookie Aaron is set up with serial-dater Casey, a casual drink at a busy Fitzroy restaurant turns into a hilarious high-stakes dinner. As the date unfolds in real time, the couple quickly finds that they are not alone on this unpredictable evening. In a delightful and unexpected twist, Casey and Aaron’s inner critics take on a life of their own when other restaurant patrons transform into supportive best friends, manipulative exe’s and protective parents, who sing and dance them through ice-breakers, tapas and potential conversational land mines.

Can this couple turn what could be a dating disaster into something special before the bill arrives?

Pursued by Bear have assembled an impressive cast to bring this story to life, led by Rebecca Hetherington and Jordon Mahar.

Rounding out the busy ensemble cast are Nicole Melloy (Jersey Boys), Danielle O’Malley (South Pacific), Caleb Jago Ward (The Ten Tenors), Stephen Valeri (Peppa Pig Live!) and Daniel Cosgrove (Dogfight).

Directed by Mark Taylor (John and Jen), First Date plays at Chapel off Chapel from 2 – 11 September for nine shows only.

Maddi Ostapiw

Maddi is a performer who has been too scared to stand in the spotlight for the last few years, so she channels her need for love and appreciation into writing about the theatre instead. An energetic consumer of musical theatre, she is currently earning a degree in journalism and teaches voice in her small hometown. Maddi is normally covered in cat fur, has an opinion on everything, and in the words of Lin-Manuel Miranda, is not throwing away her shot.