Pasty, Frogbait Productions
Tue, 23 Nov 2004, 11:02 pmWalter Plinge1 post in thread
Pasty, Frogbait Productions
Tue, 23 Nov 2004, 11:02 pmThe Blue Room Theatre of Northbridge is certainly one of Perth's best venues, making accessible at good prices excellent, contemporary, innovative, cutting edge theatre. Though its shows do target the 18- 35 year (I am mindful that for some this will be a sweeping statement) age group, I find that the best shows at the Blue Room are those that actually cater for all age groups.
The most accessible theatre touches the universal imagination and such a piece of theatre is Frogbait Production's PASTY, written by new Perth playwright Michelle Langley and directed by Teresa Izzard. On the evening I attended, octogenarians were rubbing shoulders with school students in the audience at a play which, I am glad to say, did not ignore the yawning gaps between one generation and the next.
PASTY is the tale of Rose Lambton (Michelle Sullivan), the reserved, emotionally aloof and long suffering wife of Jimmy (Michael Lamont). Through a non-linear, multiple flashback naturalistic structure, the play slowly reveals the disintegration of Rose and Jimmy's marriage until the mistakes of the past manifest and wreak havoc upon their children: Peter(Chris Rodwell), daughter in law Joan (Naomi Mathias), the illigitimate Grace (Alexa Taylor) and grandchild, Phillip (Mark Barford also doubling as "Poppy", Rose's abusive father).
At the concluding "happy family" dinner, celebrating Grace's inclusion into the fold, the atmosphere descends into delightful black comedy which saves the production from a rather ponderous exposition and development. The only fault of this otherwise excellent production is its pacing, which aimed for a sobre, minimalist stylistic delivery which failed to locate its own lyricism. With too many laborious pauses, scene transitions and laboured cues, a far more energetic, well-paced and intense delivery would allow the production's aesthetic to succeed.
Amongst seamless sound, lighting and imaginative prop and stage business, the cast displayed wonderful dexterity in shifting between the respective ages of their characters over a fifty five year gap. Michelle Sullivan, Michael Lamont and Chris Rodwell are to be congratulated for having the audacity to make me shed tears at the sheer waste, regret and painful misundertandings and half truths of a family so clearly representative of families everywhere. They were supported admirably by Naomi Mathias, Mark Barford and Alexa Taylor who provided the compassion, tenderness and self-awareness so beautifully lacking in the brittle Rose, the hopelessly flawed Jimmy and the self- indulgent Peter. Sullivan and Lamont are particularly magical in their bitter-sweet chemistry.
Writer Michelle Langley must be congratulated for capturing so well the ravages of time and cross-generational conflicts. A Must-See for the 18- 80 age group, PASTY plays at the Blue Room until this Saturday 27th.
The most accessible theatre touches the universal imagination and such a piece of theatre is Frogbait Production's PASTY, written by new Perth playwright Michelle Langley and directed by Teresa Izzard. On the evening I attended, octogenarians were rubbing shoulders with school students in the audience at a play which, I am glad to say, did not ignore the yawning gaps between one generation and the next.
PASTY is the tale of Rose Lambton (Michelle Sullivan), the reserved, emotionally aloof and long suffering wife of Jimmy (Michael Lamont). Through a non-linear, multiple flashback naturalistic structure, the play slowly reveals the disintegration of Rose and Jimmy's marriage until the mistakes of the past manifest and wreak havoc upon their children: Peter(Chris Rodwell), daughter in law Joan (Naomi Mathias), the illigitimate Grace (Alexa Taylor) and grandchild, Phillip (Mark Barford also doubling as "Poppy", Rose's abusive father).
At the concluding "happy family" dinner, celebrating Grace's inclusion into the fold, the atmosphere descends into delightful black comedy which saves the production from a rather ponderous exposition and development. The only fault of this otherwise excellent production is its pacing, which aimed for a sobre, minimalist stylistic delivery which failed to locate its own lyricism. With too many laborious pauses, scene transitions and laboured cues, a far more energetic, well-paced and intense delivery would allow the production's aesthetic to succeed.
Amongst seamless sound, lighting and imaginative prop and stage business, the cast displayed wonderful dexterity in shifting between the respective ages of their characters over a fifty five year gap. Michelle Sullivan, Michael Lamont and Chris Rodwell are to be congratulated for having the audacity to make me shed tears at the sheer waste, regret and painful misundertandings and half truths of a family so clearly representative of families everywhere. They were supported admirably by Naomi Mathias, Mark Barford and Alexa Taylor who provided the compassion, tenderness and self-awareness so beautifully lacking in the brittle Rose, the hopelessly flawed Jimmy and the self- indulgent Peter. Sullivan and Lamont are particularly magical in their bitter-sweet chemistry.
Writer Michelle Langley must be congratulated for capturing so well the ravages of time and cross-generational conflicts. A Must-See for the 18- 80 age group, PASTY plays at the Blue Room until this Saturday 27th.