Sea Wolves Howl

When two people met on a beach in September 2020 during Melbourne's lockdown, they had no idea they were starting a movement. By December, sixty more had joined them. They called themselves the Mt Martha Sea Wolves.

Sea Wolves Howl brings their extraordinary stories to life through vivid theatre and original songs. Five characters guide us through their daily ritual: waking before dawn, gathering on the shore, stripping down to their togs, joining hands so no-one can chicken out, howling like wolves, and plunging into the icy water together.

Each step of this journey offers particular physical challenges and evokes powerful stories. We meet women facing grief, illness, family violence, and social isolation. We witness their transformation as they discover that cold-water therapy becomes whole-life therapy - unleashing a wildness and playfulness that says yes to the universe with a mighty howl.

When they brave the wild sea, the differences that divide them on land are stripped away as they expose their bodies and souls to the water, to nature, and sometimes to each other. In this sacred space, they are seen, supported, celebrated and loved for their true selves.

Created through extensive interviews and conversations with the real Sea Wolves community, this work transforms their actual words into dialogue, monologue, song, image and movement. Featuring older female and gender queer performers boldly strutting their stuff in their togs, Sea Wolves Howl celebrates community resilience, the transformative power of nature, and the beauty of finding your wet and wild together.

Presented by: Frankston Arts Centre and 60% Water and Cluster Arts Global as part of Season 2026

 Thanks to our 2026 Season Partners

SEA WOLVES HOWL

Inspired by the Mount Martha Sea Wolves
From an idea by Claire Thorn (she/her)
for Flinders Fringe Festival 2024
developed with support from Mornington Peninsula Shire

Created by Carole Patullo (she/her) and Jane Bayly (she/her) with Yoni Prior (she/her)
with contributions from the actors and creative team, and thanks to Melanie Beddie
(she/her)
Direction Yoni Prior (she/her)
Music/Composition John Thorn (he/him)
Choreography/Movement Sally Grage-Moore (she/her)
Photography Noa Wolf Smith Fletcher (they/them)
Performers 
Jane Bayly (she/her) JILLY
Carmelina Di Guglielmo (she/her) MARINA
Em Jevons (they/them) LUX
Kelly Nash (she/her) PATCH
Carole Patullo (she/her) AUBREY
Audrey Hart (she/her) MUSICIAN
Set and Costume Design Kris Bird (she/her) (First Flinders season by Claudia Mirabello (she/her))
Mermaid Co-design Karine Larche (she/her)
Lighting Design Lisa Mibus (she/her)
Production/Stage Manager Steph Lee (she/they)
Touring Technician Ashleigh Basham (she/her)
Live Music Score Audrey Hart (she/her)
Sound Design Reuben Cumming (he/him)
Performer on film Octavia Stapleton (she/her)
Videography/Photography Sarah Koch (she/her), Noa Wolf Smith Fletcher (they/them)
Video Documentation Roe Bonnici (they/them)
Video Editing Ariel Johnson (she/her)
T-shirt Design Tarn Johnson (he/him

60% Water is a creative team of older women theatre makers based on Bunurong Country (Mornington Peninsula) and Wurundjeri Woi-Wurrung Country (Naarm/Melbourne). With broad experience across mainstage and independent theatre, they demonstrate enduring commitment to community-based collaborative practice.

The Sea Wolves Howl company brings together practitioners aged from their 20s to late 60s, modeling intergenerational collaboration between metropolitan and regional artists. Team members have extensive touring experience regionally, nationally and internationally, and are accomplished teaching artists working with people of all ages and abilities.

Director’s note
The Sea Wolves are both a singular phenomenon and part of a global movement. Cold water swimming has captured the imagination of people all over the globe, for its capacity to increase tolerance to stress, anchor the swimmer in the moment, decrease inflammation, and boost immunity and mental strength. There are a few things that are particular about the Sea Wolves, however, because this group of female and non-binary swimmers have forged a unique community around the ritual of a daily dip at South Beach in Mt Martha. From a response to the isolation and anxiety caused by Covid 19 and long lockdowns, they have created a collective daily ritual that heals and enlivens through deep friendship and immersion in Nature. It has been an enormous privilege to have them share their stories – both individual and collective – and to craft these stories to make a work of theatre with music that pays tribute to the resilience, care, generosity and vitality of the pack. We are thrilled to bring this heart warming work to audiences across Victoria.
Yoni Prior (she/her)

Writers’ note
In late 2023, about 30 Sea Wolves shared stories with Carole Patullo, Jane Bayly and Melanie Beddie, some in large groups at morning and afternoon teas, and others in solo and duo conversations. With permission, all of the sessions were recorded and transcribed. Verbatim text (including full stories, short phrases and single words) is the foundation of the script. In our theatre-making process, stories and reflections have been adapted and reimagined to create
new composite characters and moments, mostly not based on singular people or events. So although individual Sea Wolves may recognise some of their words, the character speaking may seem unlike them. We are indebted to the Sea Wolves for their heart-warming generosity, openness and fabulous company. We feel privileged to have been immersed in their world over the last two years, and the spirit of their connectedness will stay with us long after the final show.
Carole Patullo (she/her) and Jane Bayly (she/her)

Join the creators of Sea Wolves Howl for this special opportunity!

Take part in a free, relaxed workshop (90 mins) to learn the final song of Sea Wolves Howl. Then purchase a ticket to one of the performances on Thursday 9 July to join the cast on stage as they perform the final song.

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