The Memory of Water

          It is 1995 in a small village near Whitby, and three sisters have gathered at their mother’s home on the eve of her funeral. Mary (Rebecca Davis), a doctor of psychiatry, after a long journey is sleeping in her mother’s bed. She is awoken by Teresa (Michelle Fornasier), a frumpy hypochondriac who is devastated by her mother’s passing. Teresa has the funeral planned to the smallest detail. The two sisters start to discuss their childhood, and one wonders if they were actually present at some events, or if indeed they took place.
          When outspoken, tactless, hippy Catherine (Melinda Dransfield) arrives, she relates her mainly imagined suffering as a child, and how her life has become such a mess as a result. Childhood battle lines are recreated and defences erected. The girls demonstrate that it is not what is remembered, but rather how it has been stored in the mind.
          Mary has quite a long chat with an elderly relative (Julia Moody) who seems to remember the children’s childhood in a completely different light. When Mary’s selfish lover, married doctor Mike (Geoff Kelso), arrives in a blizzard, his presence is accepted by the family with differing attitudes.
          Teresa's husband, Frank (Stuart Halusz), has suffered from Teresa’s neurotic outlook on life for decades, and wants to escape to a better life.

The play makes use of the metaphor of homeopathy, where an essential ingredient is watered down to a ‘drop in the ocean’ and yet is still thought to possess the ‘magic action’. Here it is compared to the generations of gene mixing, and how tiny mannerisms and attitudes can persist.

The set (designer Steve Nolan) is outstanding, with an amazing amount of attention to detail – even the dome clock in the passageway was working! It was truly an old lady’s bedroom. The lighting (Joseph Mercurio) was generally simple, but had a couple of good mood effects. Sound designer, Ash Gibson Greig introduced a hospital respirator sound each time the aura of the departed mother was around.

Roger Hodgman, former Artistic Director of Melbourne Theatre Company, kept the action moving along on this superbly constructed, but difficult to execute, play. A tale which is a blend of tragedy and fond memories. Julie Walters was one of the first actors to appear in this play, and this cast adopted her accent fairly convincingly, however I felt at times that the concentration on the accent distracted the actors from their parts. With the entire cast having very different characters, it was essential that a rapport was built up between the siblings, so may I suggest do not worry about the accent as long as the interaction melds.
Good strong cast, but particular praise for Stuart Halusz and Michelle Fornasier as the neurotic couple, and Melinda Dransfield as the tasteless runt of the family.

I much preferred the dramatic sections to the comedy, but the whole play was satisfying and great fun, which will be particularly appreciated by audience members who come from a large family.