Apocalypse Perth

‘Apocalypse Perth’ written by Kate Rice is a joint Blue Room and Always Working Artists production, showing at the Blue Room Studio, 53 James Street in Northbridge at 6.30 each evening until 8^th November. There are late shows on Friday and Saturday at 9.15 pm.

On this web site in January and February this year, an amateur production, ‘Rock Apocalypse’, received an unfavourable review. There then followed an assassination of every aspect of the show and its venue. The actors and crew tried in vain to raise sympathy and put forward their case, but the insults continued unabated.

On recently re-reading these forty, or so, postings I wondered how playwright Kate Rice (last play at the Blue Room was ‘The Mozart Factor’, which won much acclaim, and achieved several nominations in the Actors’ Equity Guild awards) could make any sense of such drivel, let alone construct an interesting script. I suppose that there are some books, e.g. Shakespeare and Pinter, which on reading for the first time have given the same belief, yet in the right hands turn out to be stunning.

Kate does not merely list the string of contributions to the web thread, but has blended them with interviews, great characterisation, and even a song. There is plenty of humour and several gasps as some of the claptrap written on the web, is performed face to face by the writers with the people that they have denigrated.

With a superb choice of four very different cast member who, under the direction of Jeremy Rice, give us about six characters each. Greg McNeill’s portrayals include Tim, the show’s director who abandoned the play two weeks from opening and then returned as a performer.  One of the leading performers, Kelly (Whitney Richards) emotionally explains her heartbreak as she sees her dream of an acting career drain rapidly away. The committee member in charge of catering (Vanessa Trengove) is even attacked for charging $1 for orange cordial.

One of the final comments was from one of the show’s musicians (Craig Williams) ‘one Powerball and we will put the show on again - properly!’ I for one would love to see this show and decide for myself whether all this heartbreak and mental torture was justified.

All trolls, and generally nasty people, should see this unusual play and so discover how what they think is ‘a little bit of fun’ can actually do to those concerned. I can recommend this show to the cast of ‘Rock Apocalypse’ to see that all of their hard work was not in vein.

Composer Ashley Gibson Greig decided upon quite a heavy, but very effective style of music, similar to the radio detective serial themes of the fifties such as ‘Dick Barton’. With only a black drape set, the lighting by Lucy Birkenshaw was required to take us from the homes of the show’s performers, to the rehearsal room, the stage and committee rooms. Most effective with the use of an unusual style and mix of lamps.

I must be honest, I expected something dull and trite, but this show covered many emotions and the cast did a brilliant job. A very well constructed script, delivered with power, emotion, and at times finely choreographed movement. Most enjoyable.