MacEllen unpacks how these themes came together in the writing process, and what this pairing allowed him to examine that might not have emerged had they been interrogated in isolation. "As a trans man, I naturally draw from things I’ve lived or felt, even if they show up in different ways on the page. Our protagonist, Nic, isn’t a proxy for me, but he definitely carries a few familiar threads, bits of my own transition, and things I’ve picked up from other trans folks over the years."
"The initial spark though wasn’t about transition at all. It began from sitting in the audience at a Bendigo theatre and realising how many incredible women we have performing up here. I wanted to write something with proper, meaty roles for them. I pictured a play set in regional Victoria, like a country-town Steel Magnolias, but with a trans narrative running through it. That was the seed," he explains.
"As I started writing, the link between transition and grief kept surfacing. Not because being trans is tragic, but because stepping into who you really are often means letting go of what isn’t you anymore. The women in the play were also carrying their own forms of loss and change. Placing those experiences alongside each other felt authentic to the world I was building."
The more The Placeholder took shape, questions of perspective, representation, and form became central to MacEllen's process, including the creative and ethical hurdles of telling a trans story on stage. "One of the early challenges was figuring out how to centre a trans man without making Nic a version of me. When you’re a trans writer developing a trans character, fiction and lived experience can get blurry fast, so I had to decide what was mine to use and what needed to stay separate."
"A big hurdle was how to depict a transition on stage. Film and TV haven’t always handled this sensitively, especially when cis actors are cast in trans roles - and I didn’t want to repeat any of that. I briefly considered two actors portraying Nic, but it suggested a duality that doesn’t match most trans men’s experiences. And no trans masc actor should ever have to play a “before” version of themselves. So Nic appears as his true identity from the start. The audience meets him as a trans man, while the women around him experience his transition over time. It was risky but honest," MacEllen tells me.
It was through Midsumma’s mentorship program that paired him with actress and playwright Kate Mulvany that supported him in grappling with moments of uncertainty and sharpening his confidence. "Working with Kate helped enormously. She didn’t tell me what choices to make, but to trust the ones I was already leaning toward. She encouraged me to embrace the tougher conversations on identity and grief and reminded me I didn’t have to apologise for the trans perspective at the centre of this work. Kate essentially held the door open while I walked further into my own voice as a writer."
From the earliest drafts of The Placeholder, MacEllen was attuned to the sound and physicality of the play, writing with particular voices, rhythms, and presences in mind. He reflects on how imagining performers informed the script from the outset, and on the excitement of getting to see an ensemble give form to these voices for the first time. "When I started the draft, I told Kate that I had certain actors in my head for each character, where some were Australian stage legends and others were faces from English or American film and TV. Kate inspired me to lean into that instinct and write for the voices I could hear, rather than worrying about who might eventually be cast. It freed me up to focus on the storytelling instead of second-guessing the future."
"The first time I heard Act One read aloud at the Abbotsford Convent development during Midsumma Festival 2025, everything shifted. The actors brought the text to life with their humour, timing, and how quickly they found the rhythm and heart of their characters. From that moment on, I could picture and hear those voices as I continued writing and refining the script," he says. "The Placeholder is truly an ensemble piece, and the actors all bring something unique to the story. They’ve made me laugh, cry, and gasp, and I know audiences will be similarly moved."
"And by extension, regional communities have a different kind of closeness. People carry long histories with each other, and change tends to land more personally. That intimacy shapes their reactions. Those living in a small community may not have met many openly trans or gender diverse people, so they’re reacting to their personal experience instead of a wider understanding. That intensifies both the support and the conflict that everyone is dealing with."
"What I love about this regional setting is that no one can hide. These characters keep bumping into each other, whether they want to or not, and that pressure can expose old tensions but also unexpected tenderness. The stakes feel personal because everything unfolds right on their doorstep."
As The Placeholder moves towards its Midsumma premiere, MacEllen is clear about what he hopes audiences will take with them, not a set of instructions, but by showing up for each other, even when it feels awkward or unfamiliar. By placing transition, grief, and community side by side, the play demonstrates the reality that care is often imperfect, learning is ongoing, and support is something we practise rather than master. For MacEllen, that messiness isn’t a flaw, it’s where honesty, and connection, begin.
MIDSUMMA MINUTE – QUICKFIRE FIVE
1. A song I could listen to on repeat forever is Joni Mitchell’s 2000 version of "Both Sides Now". Yes, the Emma Thompson scene in Love Actually. It just… undoes me in the best way.
2. One object I can’t live without backstage is probably predictably, my smartphone. It’s how I stay in touch, jot down notes, dictate ideas, and listen to music while I daydream about my characters.
3. My favourite word is “plethora,” because it’s delicious to say and it means an abundance, and who doesn’t want a bit of that?
4. Something unexpected that brings me joy is a cut-throat shave at the barber, because it’s this perfect mix of masculine ritual and gentle pampering.
5. If I could live one day as someone else, it would be Australian theatre and TV all-rounder Virginia Gay. I’d love to experience the world from inside that extraordinary brain, the brilliance, the energy, the constant spark of ideas. And on a far more practical note, she’s taller than me, so I’d finally be able to reach the top shelf at the supermarket.
SHOW DETAILS
Venue: fortyfivedownstairs, 45 Flinders Lane, Melbourne
Season: 27 Jan - 8 Feb | Tues - Sat 7:30pm, Sun 5pm
Duration: 130 minutes
Tickets: $45 Full | $39 Conc | $38 Preview
Bookings: Midsumma Festival
Primary image credit: Meagan Harding
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