TRANSCENDENT LOVE - 2025
WRITER/PERFORMER’S NOTE
SKYE PAEZ
Transcendent Love was born from my desire to share a story that is both deeply personal and universally human. At its heart, this piece is about love’s power to transform us through joy, through struggle, and through the courage it takes to live authentically.
In creating this work, I wanted to weave together moments of vulnerability and resilience; laughter and longing; activism and intimacy. It is as much a celebration of trans experience as it is a meditation on what connects us all. My hope is that the audience leaves with not just an understanding of my journey but a reflection of their own capacity for love, truth, and transcendence.
About Skye Paez
Skye (she/her) is a writer, performer, and multidisciplinary artist working across theatre, poetry, and ritual storytelling. Born on Gadigal Land and of South American heritage, she is a proud transgender woman and a passionate advocate for visibility, sacred transformation, and artistic truth.
Skye has worked professionally across stage and screen. Transcendent Love, produced under her company Always Productions, marks her debut as a solo playwright-performer. Developed in collaboration with director James Hartley, the one woman play is a deeply personal and poetic exploration of trans identity, romance, and resilience.
She is currently developing Divine Transmission, an upcoming exhibition at Qtopia Sydney. The immersive work blends fragrance, sound, and storytelling to honour trans identities as sacred which extends her commitment to art as both personal ritual and public offering.
Beyond the arts, Skye is also a speaker, meditator, and trained yoga instructor. She studied under internationally acclaimed teacher Light Watkins and considers her “Year of Transformation” with him a profound turning point in both her life and her art. Guided by the values of Beauty, Grace, Resilience, and Integrity, Skye’s work invites audiences into a space of tenderness, revelation, and radical hope.
DIRECTOR’S NOTE
JAMES HARTLEY
Skye approached me in 2024 after I had given a talk about directing at an event for Short+Sweet Sydney. She said that she wanted to write stories that celebrated trans people that didn’t end in tragedy or sorrow which really appealed to me so I offered to give feedback on her 10 minute script “Transcendent Love”.
I found her to have great instincts and clear ideas about what she wanted and I felt that I was able to give her feedback without feeling that she would just automatically incorporate it just because I said so.
As we continued to correspond, she expressed that she wanted to write a full length play based on the short and I offered what insight and help I could. When applications opened for Sydney Fringe this year, we thought it would be a good opportunity for a low-stakes production and Skye asked me to come on board as director.
Skye has been just as hard working, or even more, as a performer as I experienced of her as a writer. Her knowledge of theatrical conventions has grown rapidly and her commitment to rehearsal as well as singing and dancing is so admirable.
It has been a great joy and privilege to direct this play and help shepherd it to where it is now. I hope that it can continue to have a future whether performed by other actors or expanded to have the other characters played by actors. I also hope that, in a small way, this play can contribute to the narrative of trans people as worthy to be the main characters of stories of all genres.
About James Hartley
James (he/him) is an award winning director, writer, and actor of theatre and film. He was born in Western Sydney, grew up in the Philippines, and is of Malay-Chinese and Australian-Scottish descent. He is neurodiverse (autism spectrum disorder level 1) and has a mental disability (schizo-affective disorder).
In 2013 he won Best Director at Short+Sweet Sydney, the largest short play festival in the world. Through the theatre company he created, the Upper Crass Theatre Company, he has directed six productions of new Australian writing; Transcendent Love will be his seventh. As a director, career highlights include Death in the Pantheon (which he also wrote) at Flight Path Theatre and Fragments by Maura Pierlot at Pioneer Theatre. He has also directed or written scenes for Slanted Theatre, Wise Words, Shakespeare by Night, and Senseless & Fitz.
James also hosts and produces the Upper Crass Players improv troupe who have been regularly performing together since 2016. Three of their members won Impro Australia’s Scriptless Cup in 2018. James has a Bachelor of Arts in English and Film Studies and a Certificate IV in Screen and Media.
KATHERINE WOLFGRAMME - VOICE OF GOD
Katherine is an esteemed transgender advocate, cultural educator, and media personality celebrated for her eloquence and commanding presence. With a career spanning public speaking, consultancy, and community leadership, Katherine has become a prominent voice for LGBTQ+ visibility and equality in Australia.
Her work has been featured on national television, radio, and in major publications, earning her recognition as one of the community’s most influential figures.
Bringing gravitas and warmth to her role as the Voice of God, Katherine lends a divine resonance to this production, blending authority with a touch of grace and humour. Her participation reflects her passion for storytelling that empowers, inspires, and celebrates diverse identities on stage and beyond.
Special thanks to:
Merlin Penna for her help with design
Tiang Lim and Neil Parikh for the use of their voices