Biographies
Joe Paradise Lui Co-Creator, Co-Writer, Co-Director, Performer & Composer
Cherish Marrington Set Designer
Cherish is an artist and a designer for theatre and film based in Perth. She graduated in Fine Arts at Central Institute of Technology in 2010 and went on to graduate in Design for Live Production at WAAPA in 2013. Since then she has designed for a range of theatre and film productions. Her film work includes The Dustwalker (2017) and It Only Takes a Night (2021). She has worked continuously in theatre since 2013, her most recent projects being Unnatural (2024) and LEGENDS (of the Golden Arches) (2025) and Blue (2025). Sensitive to narrative and atmosphere, her stage work is known for its subtle physical evocation of the text. Her own creative work investigates ‘horror-erotica’ and its relationship to human experience and the natural world. In 2019 she became director of Chinoiserie Fine Art. and recently co-founded Carpark Projects, a gallery and project space fostering experimental art, performance and music.
Joe is a submerging artist and undisputed winner of the 2013 Spirit of the Fringe Award. It has won no awards since. Joe is a founding member of Renegade Productions. Within its aegis it creates experimental theatre and performance works. Joe is also a freelance director, writer and a sound and lighting designer. Its most recent professional directing work was as Assistant Director on A Streetcar Named Desire at Melbourne Theatre Company. Its most recent independent directing work was Whitesnake3000 , presented at Co3.
Merlynn Tong Co-Creator, Co-Writer, Co-Director & Performer
Merlynn is a writer and actor. Some of her other playwriting credits include Golden Blood (Griffin Theatre, Sydney Theatre Company, Melbourne Theatre Company), Antigone (adaptation, Queensland Theatre, Mercury Theatre UK) and Blue Bones (Playlab Productions). Some of her stage performances include The Poison of Polygamy (La Boite Theatre & Sydney Theatre Company), Golden Blood (Griffin Theatre), Blue Bones (Playlab Productions) and White Pearl (Sydney Theatre Company & National Theatre of Parramatta). Some of her screen performances include Top of the Lake: China Girl (BBC & Sundance Films), In Our Blood (Hoodlum Entertainment) and Nautilus (Disney). Her one-woman-show Blue Bones by Playlab Productions, that she also performed in, has won six Matilda Awards including the Lord Mayor Award for Best New Australian Work, Best Mainstage Production and Best Female Actor in a Leading Role. Her work Golden Blood was short-listed for a Victorian Premier Literary Award, NSW Premier’s Literary Award, as well as Sydney Theatre Award (Best New Australian Work).
Nicole Marrington Costume Designer
Nicole is a Perth-based costume designer, coordinator and maker for theatre, performing arts and film. A recent selection of costume design work includes Manifest (STRUT Dance), Beneath the Music (Performing Lines), Song Circle (Perth Festival), Las Hormigas/The Ants (PICA), At the End of the Land (Too Close to the Sun Theatre), SITU-8:CITY (STRUT Dance), Homeward Bound (Lazy Yarns) and The Ugly (Renegade Productions) as well as Savage Grace and JULIA (Steamworks Arts).
Rose Finlay Assistant Costume Maker
Rose is a Perth-based freelance costume maker whose career began in the fashion industry, where she honed a keen eye for design and technical craftsmanship. Now, engaging and working across all different areas of live theatre and film – from ballet to opera to fashion pieces for film, her work fuses creativity, functionality and a deep understanding of performance needs. Rose is dedicated to the craft of costume construction, finding joy in the process of turning concepts into wearable works of art, and embracing the magic of collaboration to make each costume not just a piece of clothing, but a key element of storytelling.
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