By Travis Johnson
Breaking up is hard to do, but perhaps its easier in song? In any case, Melbourne-based comedian and lyricist Gillian Cosgriff (Offspring, Written it Down) and director David Zwolenski (Dave in the Life, Written it Down, Turia Pitt – On The Wall), have decided to frame one of life’s nigh-universal experiences, dissolving a relationship, as a musical in the four part series, Whelmed.
Cosgriff plays Gen, 28, who has just broken up with her first boyfriend of 12 years and quickly realises the world is a very different place to when she was 16 and single. After dumping her boyfriend while he’s literally proposing to her, Gen then has to figure out how life works when you haven’t been alone for a very long time.
Kicking off with a live piano ballad performed and recorded in front of the iconic Arts Centre Melbourne, the series deals with topics like using dating apps to get what you really want, the lessons children learn from misogynistic fairy tales, and the struggle to go clubbing when Netflix is just so much more appealing – all set to some catchy tunes.
Produced and self-financed by Real Good Kid Productions, the show was nominated for Best Comedy at Melbourne’s WebFest 2017 and accepted into the International Academy of Web Television Festival in L.A. nominated in four categories – Best Comedy, Best Director, Best Female Lead and Best Writing.
Season two of Whelmed is currently in development, in the meantime, check out the first episode above, and catch up on the rest of the first series here.
