The facade on the timber house ingeniously peels away and the audience is welcomed into the heart of the home.
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It's Christmas in regional Australia.
Siblings Rosie (Bridie Connell) and Gen (Grace Rouvray) are setting both the table and the scene in rapid-fire time.
Their parents, Hamish (PJ Williams) and Carolyn (Kerryn Beatty), are divorced and their mum has a new husband in Tony (Damian Callinan).
Since Carolyn's obsession with US TV series Modern Family, they now celebrated the festive season together as a blended family at Hamish's home: "Darling, you divorce the man, not the pool."
The sisters trade insults and barbs in quick succession about their family situation.
It is poetry in motion.
The audience laughs and winces; we feel for them and with them possibly because we are them!
This messy and big-hearted new play, The Plan and Other Plans, written and performed by the comedy duo of Rouvray (Netflix' 600 Bottles of Wine) and Connell (Tonightly with Tom Ballard) presented its world premiere to a full house at the Butter Factory Theatre in Wodonga on Tuesday, March 19.
Gen introduces their dad as "local legend, landscape gardener for most of the town, and basically a labrador". Rosie continues: "He's just so happy to be there."
The exquisite script never falters over the 90-minute show.
The sisters are devoted to their Paul Kelly-loving dad so it comes as a big shock when he collapses at the Christmas table.
With a partition curtain drawn around and the dining table-now-hospital bed, the audience leans in to learn the fate of the family.
Ever-efficient, Gen is quick to concoct a Cancer Calendar out of an Excel spreadsheet.
They plan to share the load of their dad's treatment appointments by flying-in and out, keeping their meddling mum out of the loop. It's Gen's idea but younger sister Rosie plays along.
They also aim to hang on to their jobs and relationships as they grapple with their new-found support roles.
Over the coming weeks the sisters dig in with their dad at the home football matches, line dancing, motocross and even the Lavender, Herb and Chilli Festival.
The clever use of costumes and set and one particularly hilarious accent by Callinan - you'll know it when you hear it - puts the audience squarely in country Australia.
Beatty is utterly brilliant as town busybody Kylie.
Underneath the fun and games and distractions, however, the sisters have to come to terms with a kind of anticipatory grief.
Tough conversations happen.
Having come to know these fully-fleshed out characters - they invited us over for Christmas Day, after all, we feel for them in the face of their loss. (Don't wear mascara or make it waterproof if you must!)
Director Karla Conway draws out the best in this exceptional cast who more than deliver on an original and thought-provoking script that will resonate with everyone.
Border creative Sophie Woodward did the clever set design while Andrée Cozens composed the stunning music.
After a tiny technical hitch at the start of the show, it never missed a beat.
Goodbyes are hard.
I hope this show keeps travelling.
The Plan (and Other Plans) runs on Wednesday, March 20, at 6.30pm, Thursday, March 21, at 11am and 7.30pm, Friday, March 22, at 7.30pm and Saturday, March 23, at 3pm and 7.30pm.
