The Truth About Kookaburras REVIEW

The Truth About Kookaburras Written and Directed by Sven Swenson Presented by Metro Arts and Pentimento Productions Sue Benner Theatre, Metro Arts, Edward St, Brisbane The Truth About Kookaburras is an eye-opener with more levels than a sky-scraper and more layers than an onion. A mix of naked footballers, a feminist cop, and a has-been AFL player take us on an emotional journey that explores issues about what it is to be a man. The plot surrounds the mysterious murder of a Gold Coast Kookaburras team member, who is killed during a bucks’ night at the team grounds. There’s alcohol, a stripper, and plenty of testosterone present on the night, but there’s a lot more to this story than footballers behaving badly. Essentially the story delves into the mysterious and puzzling tradition of buck’s nights. What is male comaraderie, and why do men feel the need to express it in the way they do? What is the role of men, in life, or in a relationship? 13 football players shed some light on these deep questions. The play is very timely with the current hoo-ha over footballers’ behaviour. Written in 2001, Sven Swenson predicted his play would attract audiences that wouldn’t usually attend the theatre because of this parallel hype (). My feelings about this production are mixed. If I’m going to be entirely honest, I think some of the deeper issues went over my head. There is a lot going on in this play all the time, and it was at times hard to follow. There are twists and surprises around every corner, and new issues are continually brought to light. I was intrigued by every character’s attitude and story, which ranged from bad childhoods to full-time carers to redundancy in the role of husband. It was a very confronting experience at first, with 13 full-frontal naked men wandering around the stage. Well, not just wandering; showing it off, and drawing your attention to it whether you liked it or not. However, this show is not just confronting because there is nudity, it was so believable – and that was alarming. Let me be overtly sexist for one paragraph and say this play makes me consider football team behaviour, binge drinking, alcohol fuelled violence, and watching naked girls dance around is about more than men just being beastly and awful. I’m not swayed, but this play certainly presents the idea the bad behaviour is a deep seated psyche and not just knock-about lads being a bit naughty. Performances were impressive, with stand-outs from Peter Cossar, Don Burgess, and Sean Bowes. Cossar, who played team coach Mick, gave a whole-heartedly convincing performance of a troubled man trying to find his place in the world. His presence on stage was strong and consistent, while his character developed and grew throughout the production. Burgess, a homophobic larrikin, was a character I loved to hate. Cringe-worthy and obscene, Burgess’s portrayal was hard not to admire. An underdog of the night, Bowes delivered a powerful performance when describing his circumstances as a full-time carer for his mother. Once again, extremely convincing and delivered with conviction. Jacki Mison as Sylvie bothered me as she delivered all her lines in the same style as a TV newsreader. She relaxed this formal rigidness later in the production, which gave her character a chance to be taken seriously. This production was a monster feat, and at three hours I was surprised it didn’t feel that long at all. Two short intervals broke up the night and gave me a chance to take in what I had just seen. The Truth About Kookaburras will have me thinking for a few more days yet. You can view an interview with Sven Swenson on The Truth About Kookaburras at The show continues until the 6th of June. Tickets can be purchased at www.metroarts.com.au. Kellie Scott, 22 May 2009, WWW.BRISBANECRITIQUES.COM