When Merlynn Tong was growing up in Singapore she was fascinated by Australia.
She recalls the images she saw in advertisements – of the ocean, kangaroos and Sydney Opera House.
“I thought everyone surfed when I moved here,” she says.
“I lived in Perth, and all my housemates were from the country, so everyone was a farmer. No one knew how to surf and I was really surprised by that.”
It’s a preoccupation that she shares with the protagonist of her latest play, Golden Blood, which opens at Griffin Theatre Company at the end of June.
Golden Blood’s main character, named simply Girl and played by Tong, carries a toy koala under her arm and dreams of moving to Australia to study veterinary science.
Tong came to Australia at the age of 21 to study theatre, after she worked in advertising for a few years in Singapore.
“I was born as an artist in Australia … Getting my whole education, my inspiration, my mentors, my collaborators – everything has been born here.”
Girl gives up her dream of moving to Australia to stay in Singapore with her gangster brother – who moves in with her after their mother dies by suicide when she is 14 and he is 21.
But Girl remains attached to a romantic ideal of Australia.
“It feels free there you know / Like everyone respects each other / No lies / No dark history / No oppression / Everyone…
