The play is the coinage of Federation University performing arts students and emerging theatre directors Fae O’Toole and Hannah Davies.  

The idea came to Ms O’Toole as she was driving into Ballarat along Victoria Street earlier this year.

She was struck by the raw emotion of the Loud Fence ribbons tied to the gates of the St Alipius Boys' School.

“I saw the ribbons and the words “No more silence”,” Ms O’Toole said.

“I knew in a general way what the Royal Commission into Child Sexual Abuse was about, but I had never really dug deeper.”

“I began looking at newspaper articles and the Loud Fence Facebook page.”

“I was absolutely horrified by it and desperate to somehow give a voice to the survivors.”

The play is based on the personal story of clergy sexual abuse survivor Andrew Collins but woven into the narrative are widespread themes including institutional corruption, suicide and broken trust.   

“This piece of work is really him more than us,” Ms O’Toole said.

 “It’s got his soul at the heart of it. It’s all been informed by what he has said to us.”

Ms Davies said Mr Collins’ story was adapted word for word.

“He spoke for more than three hours to us,” she said.

“We’ve listened again and again to the interview and picked pieces and meshed it all together.”

Mr Collins praised the work of the students on shedding light on the issue. 

“Although it's my words, it is the story of all survivors and the history of abuse in Ballarat,” Mr Collins said.

“It's a credit to both Fae and Hannah that they decided to do something to keep our stories alive.”

The play will be showcased to members of Federation University as a part of this year’s Student Theatre Festival on Sunday.

The show is not open to the public. 

For more information, visit m.facebook.com/No-More-Silence-1678523519137708/

To contact the Centre Against Sexual Assault, located on the corner of Vale and Edwards streets, Sebastopol, call 5320 3933 or free call 24 hours 1800 806 292. 

Lifeline is available at 131 114 or via lifeline.org.au