REVIEW Gwen in Purgatory

Gwen in Purgatory By Tommy Murphy Directed by Neil Armfield Presented La Boite & Company B Belvoir Roundhouse Theatre, Kelvin Grove, Brisbane Plays that ring all too true always receive a significant reception from their audience. You can feel the crowd’s eyes around you, glued to the stage, intensely watching. Gwen in Purgatory is a charming look into an elderly woman’s twilight years that grabs its audience with humour, honesty and sentiment. The snap-shot of Gwen’s daily life takes place in her brand new home in the town of Queanbeyan, Canberra. Surrounded by unpacked boxes and a lifeless beige interior, she’s facing a time in her life that threatens her independence. She’s just pranged the car, she can’t decipher the air-con from the oven and her denial about it all is abruptly brought to her attention by the family. Grandson Daniel has dropped around to lend a hand and meanwhile probes his Nanna for information about his drug-addicted mother and opens up about the strains of being raised by his aunt. Then son Laurie stops by to bother her with finance and insurance matters. To add to the commotion, daughter Peg fusses about the home, caught between trying to live her own life and caring for her increasingly fragile mother. Father Ezekiel has been invited over to bless the house –and quickly becomes the centre of the storm that is Gwen’s family... By Kellie Scott. To read the full review please visit http://www.brisbanecritiques.com