THE WAR ROOM Sells Out in Perth

A Breakout Success at Fringe World Festival in 2017

Actors Daniel Moxham, John Gray, Ellis Kinnear, and Leia Mizerski with director James Cunningham in Perth © Presidential Production

The debut season of THE WAR ROOM in Perth has officially sold out, marking a significant achievement for Presidential Productions and for playwright James Cunningham.

Performed across three packed nights at Fringe World Festival, the production quickly became one of the event’s standout small-venue successes, drawing enthusiastic audiences and generating lively post-show discussion. The intimate venue at Yogahub Mt Hawthorn proved the ideal setting for the play’s high-pressure, single-room premise.

The audience-wrapped “in the round” configuration amplified the tension, placing viewers mere steps away from the performers as they argued, theorised, unravelled, and attempted to craft the definitive first-contact screenplay. Many audience members remarked that the experience felt less like watching a play and more like being embedded in the writers’ bunker — a testament to both the staging and the cast’s immersive performances.

Word of mouth spread rapidly throughout the festival. Early attendees praised the play’s razor-sharp dialogue, its blend of philosophical depth and humour, and its refreshing originality in a festival landscape often filled with solo shows and cabaret. As a result, later performances sold out swiftly, with some patrons attempting to secure last-minute seats at the door.

Audience feedback highlighted the production’s unique ability to spark conversation. Viewers debated everything from the ethics of storytelling to the politics of fear, from the influence of Hollywood on public imagination to the human need for narratives when confronting the unknown. The play’s final moments — which leave open the question of what the writers ultimately discover — became a frequent topic in lobby discussions long after the curtain call.

For the cast — Daniel Moxham, John Gray, Ellis Kinnear, and Leia Mizerski — the sold-out season was a validation of months of intensive rehearsal and creative risk-taking. Each actor embraced a character wrestling with ambition, insecurity, and the burden of shaping a story that could determine humanity’s fate. Their collective chemistry onstage became one of the production’s defining strengths.

For Presidential Productions, the sold-out run signals growing national interest in original Australian theatre that blends genre inspiration with intellectual substance. The company has already received enquiries about potential encore performances or an expanded tour, hinting that THE WAR ROOM may only be at the beginning of its lifespan.

As the dust settles on its triumphant Perth season, one thing is certain: THE WAR ROOM has struck a chord. In a world increasingly defined by uncertainty, Cunningham’s play offers audiences a fresh lens through which to examine fear, responsibility, and the stories we rely on to make sense of the unfamiliar. Its success at Fringe World suggests that Australian audiences are eager for exactly this kind of bold, idea-driven theatre.

For more information visit Presidential Productions.