The Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute (ONJCRI) is incredibly proud to have been KBT Community Theatre’s charity partner for its production of Grease: The Musical, held in the Yan Yean Theatre, South Morang.
The musical was a fabulous tribute to the original film, which was an iconic pop culture moment featuring our founding champion, the late Olivia Newton-John.
The company, consisting of cast, band, backstage crew and production team members, involved more than 50 members of KBT Community Theatre from Melbourne’s northern suburbs. Together, they staged a glittering production over three nights, featuring all the iconic characters, classic cars, leather jackets and the world-famous soundtrack.
Michael Kneebone, President of KBT Community Theatre, highlighted the devastating reality that “many of us have been touched by cancer in some way” during the introductory speech on opening night.
“Just over fifteen years ago, my wife was diagnosed with breast cancer,” Michael later shared. “She received surgery and extensive chemotherapy followed by radiation treatment. Both treatments were extremely invasive, and during her chemotherapy sessions she suffered seizures on two occasions.
Fortunately, my wife is one of the success stories and is now cancer free. Sadly, that has not been the case for many of our colleagues and friends.”
“When we decided to stage Grease as our show, we felt it was important to support the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute,” said Michael. “If we can help make the treatment process less taxing for future cancer sufferers, while also raising awareness of the work being done by the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute, we believe that it benefits our local community.”
The KBT Community Theatre story began in 2024 when Michael Kneebone, a teacher at a local school, and a group of like-minded individuals recognised that young people in the area lacked opportunities to pursue acting, singing and dancing beyond school. Together, they worked to fill this gap by establishing KBT Community Theatre.
Today, KBT has reinvigorated a passion for performing arts among many students and has produced two productions since its inception, bringing culture and joy to musical theatre enthusiasts across Melbourne’s northern suburbs and beyond.
We are grateful for the dedication of the entire company, who rehearsed for countless hours to bring this production to life, with a portion of ticket proceeds directly supporting our research.
KBT Community Theatre’s support is a powerful demonstration of how local communities can make a meaningful difference in improving outcomes for cancer patients.
Thank you to KBT Community Theatre, its actors, production team and Michael, for supporting our mission to develop more effective, tolerable and accessible cancer care.
