MELBOURNE, VIC. — Three children need her. Her husband is having a seizure. A Teams meeting wants to know if now is still a good time. Welcome to one impossible morning in The Manager Is Me.
Melbourne audiences are invited to experience The Manager Is Me, a fierce and funny solo theatre performance exploring motherhood, invisible labour and the exhausting reality of being the person who keeps everything running.
Written and performed by Melbourne writer and performer Dayna Fallon, The Manager Is Me follows one impossible morning: three children, a husband experiencing a seizure, school drop-off, a work Teams meeting and a woman attempting to hold an entire household together while quietly losing track of herself.
Blending comedy, spoken word and theatre, this 55-minute Melbourne Fringe performance transforms the daily pressures of parenting, work and caring into a raw, relatable and highly entertaining stage experience. It’s about surviving a medical emergency, a work meeting and a toddler meltdown before breakfast… and then completely losing your shit because you can’t find a shoe.
With its sharp humour and honest storytelling, The Manager Is Me is likely to resonate with mothers, carers, managers, eldest daughters and anyone who has ever typed “haha all good x” while their life was spectacularly unravelling.
It is a show for anyone who has ever hidden in the driveway for five minutes of peace, treated a quiet car ride as a micro-holiday or wished someone would simply ask how they were doing.
Fallon’s performance is grounded in lived experience. A Melbourne mother of three young girls, including twins, she also cares for a husband with complex health needs and leads workplace change. Her extensive experience in unpaid crisis management provides the foundation for a performance that is both blisteringly funny and deeply human.
Dayna Fallon is the 2025 Victorian State Poetry Slam Champion and a National Finalist who has performed at the Sydney Opera House. Her debut solo theatre work brings the poems that established her voice to the stage, creating a powerful reckoning with what happens when a woman becomes the person everyone needs, especially when she needs someone too.
Directed by Cathy Hunt, The Manager Is Me promises Melbourne Fringe audiences an evening of comedy, spoken word and recognition. It offers the perfect opportunity to step away from family logistics, bring a friend and enjoy a night out with people who understand the chaos.
