A Conversation

Old Mill Theatre has always been an enigma in my life. Having been a part of the theatre scene since, well, forever, I’ve always known about it. And until last Saturday I had never been there. But what a way to be introduced to an endearing location.

A Conversation, written by the always wonderful David Williamson who is the quintessential Australian playwright, is a confronting, harrowing theatre experience. That being said it is a show that I would whole heartedly recommend. Although it would be prudent to remember that there are adult themes in this show and I would not recommend it for those are faint of heart.

The play itself focuses on the concept of community conferencing as a way of solving issues between two parties. This of course is fraught with danger as there will always be those who are biased due to prejudices and other interfering factors. Therefore, with such an interesting topic to build on is it any wonder that once again Williamson has created a clever, emotion-ridden story.

As the crowd filed into the theatre the stage was prelit and we had one of the actors, Rhett Clarke who portrayed Jack Manning, moving freely about the stage. He was in full character and overall it was a good idea, it sets the scene for the audienece and it gave a bit of an insight into Manning’s feelings about what was about to occur through non-verbal acting. However I found that perhaps he needed to set the chairs up only once, the shuffling about stage made me and my theatre date for that night slightly wary on his behalf.

As far as set goes I found the layout of the stage to be very beneficial, the limited stage props gave the actors room to work with during their performances – something that was done very well. If anything I found that I disliked the paintings in the room – they were almost too ‘out there’ for the setting, perhaps that is just my nit picking though.
Brendan Ellis is a regular fixture on the Perth theatre scene including his experience with directing ‘Face to Face’, the first in the Jack Manning trilogy – to which A Conversation is a follow up. It should be noted that you don’t need to have seen the first play. A play directed by Ellis always has a certain streak of flair woven through. He takes the play, stays true to what the playwright has envisioned and then further builds on this, something that is very creative and inspiring.

I feel it important to note that Ellis cast magnificently well for this performance, the cast were pulled together and treated each role with respect and skill that Ellis should be proud of. Speaking as a person who has discussed the casting process with Ellis, his approach to characterisation and rehearsing each character relentlessly until he achieved the emotional maturity that the play required.

The title character of Jack Manning portrayed by Rhett Clarke, as previously mentioned, was a great central character for the others to bounce off. If anything it was refreshing to have a character that didn’t have an emtotionally vested interest in the outcome of the meeting, other than making sure all parties were satisified. It was pleasing to see that Clarke, a newcomer to the stage, didn’t try to insert himself as the star of the performance and let his actions speak for him.

Prison psychologist Lorin Zemanek, a character who had walked the fine line between her professional career and her emotions in regards to the offender, Scott. This character was performed by Katrina Murphy, who gave a performace that got the audience questioning whether her emotions really did play a role in the tragedy that has befallen all those in the conference. Having a character that can make you think is something that is beneficial to any show, it means the audience will be thinking about your show for days to come. The rising tension that Murphy applied to her acting worked splendidly and I commend her on this role.

The family of the victim, brought to life by Gino Cataldo (Derek Milsom) and Liss Hoffman (Barbara Milsom), were easily recognisable and they gave a thrilling performance of the greiving family. I should like to commendate Hoffman on her monologues that she delivered flawlessly and heavy with emotion, she nearly brought me to tears each time. The raw pain and burning anger portrayed by Cataldo was also a credit, the contrast off the grieved Hoffman.

Perhaps the most difficult roles to play, in my mind perhaps, was those that were the family of the perepetrator, the Williams family. The mother, who loved her boy in spite of what he did, Coral – played by Gail Lusted – gave a performance that had me empathising with her, trying desperately to understand her situation. Natasha Stiven portrayed the newly graduated Gail Williams, elder sister to Scott, and gave a performance that had me frustrated at her character’s love of spouting rhetoric, yet I should commend Stiven on giving a realistic performance.

I felt the most saddened when I watched Brodie Masini, who played the younger brother Mick Williams, on stage. His characterisation was flawless that it had me moved to near tears and wanting to go up there to hug him. Most of this came from simple non verbal acting that showed both the fear and hatred the man had towards his brother. Masini should be proud of the performance he gave.

Last, but certainly not least, Andrew Watson delivered a solid show as the uncle, Bob Shorter. His reluctance to be involved in the conferencing hit home for me that not all people put faith in such methods, including in real life and on the stage. His frustration at being the person consistently blamed for Scott returning to his old ways was real and very understanable despite, to quote Mick’s character, it being Scott’s own fault.

After this show I most certainly recommend a glass of nice wine because, despite it being a wonderful show, the hard hitting emotions that you will experience will warrant this. I would also suggest going with a group or someone else, lest you need someone to support you. Once more a large commendation is due for Ellis and his cast for a wonderful show, I was very much impressed.

If there were a few things to improve on I would say that perhaps look at how the blocking was arranged during the show. At some points I found I could not see some of the cast when others were moving about the stage. Understandably this is difficult to achieve but it is merely a thought ot keep in mind. I would also like to have had more lights up during the curtain call, it was difficult to see the faces of the cast whilst this was happening due to the dim lighting provided.

All in all no major grievances here and I should note that I will be returning to watch the show again, I rather missed out on a few good scenes and I should like to see them again. See you guys there!