Review: One Act Wonders - Javeenbah Theatre

Written by Mark Rickell

“Playwriting is an oral art; it's not an art of a writer expecting to be read but a writer expecting to be heard..” -  Arthur Miller

 

Continuing with what hopefully will remain an annual tradition, Javeenbah Theatre has once again offered it’s wonderful space and lovely community to local artists in One Act Wonders.

 

This year offered five excellent works from local playwrights and this year saw the first offering of a ‘writer’s group’ with the selected playwrights to workshop their respective plays and develop and enhance their skills in the months leading up to it. As both an actor and writer myself, it encourages me greatly to see works by my local peers and also support an organisation which helps develop our local talent in so many ways.

 

“There's a kind of a fundamental irresponsibility in playwriting, and the strength of playwriting comes from that irresponsibility” – Tony Kushner

The first production in the running order was “Mother’s Group: Uncorked,” the sequel to one of the plays from last year’s One Act Wonders. It was clear that the actors in this play relished being able to reprise their respective roles (where possible) and the associated character development that accompanied that. Finally free from their children on the first night of a girls weekend away, the play did an excellent job of presenting the comical moments that come with being free from responsibility, whilst also remaining poignant and addressing some of the more serious issues that come with motherhood and potential motherhood. Nicky Fisser was particularly funny in her role as Amanda, her comic timing, delivery and physicality were all really excellent and she had me belly laughing on more than one occasion. Rhyll Davis as Jennifer served as a perfect foil to Amanda’s shenanigans, offering herself as the “straight man” in the sitcom, only the tiniest bit ironic as she plays a married lesbian who happens to end up the object of Amanda’s newly discovered, somewhat inebriated, advances. This storyline offers a nice balance to the other, one which has a fairly well disguised twist in which a secret pregnancy and infidelity scandal, resolves itself as a wonderfully heart-warming revelation that one mother is acting as surrogate for her friend. The whole play is really nicely balanced around the back and forth between the overlapping storylines. The set and lighting are both extremely functional, both acting as a fairly blank canvas on which to paint the story. A few key props are used very effectively to show keen-eyed members of the audience a small hint towards what could really be happening and the resolution of the plot is satisfying but not contrived, with each of the 5 characters showing growth and development in this short time.

“When I was 18 and not sure whether I wanted to be an actor, I realised that a playwright has no voice without an actor. That's my reason for acting: to get that character as right as possible for my writer. And I have never changed my philosophy.” - David Suchet

The second performance on the playbill was of “Battle of the Boyfriends”. Similar to the first play, Battle was a sitcom with a few twists and turns. Set entirely in Amy’s apartment, Battle was centred around the idea of having all the guys you happen to be dating, all accidentally meeting one another at the same time. The play was full of twists of rom-com cliches, there was the “straight man” in Harry who wants Amy all to himself, Mouse, the lovable, naive and slightly dopey sweetheart who just wants to be a good boyfriend, even if that means he has to be one of a few boyfriends. Unhinged Logan, who spends the first 10 minutes of the scene crammed away in a wardrobe waiting to tell boyfriends 1 and 2 that there’s a more threatening “older gentleman” boyfriend 4 they need to be on the lookout for (that he’s plotting to kill) and that boyfriend 4 turns out to be both Amy’s boss Gordon and Logan’s own father! The play is crammed full of excellent physical comedy, with a lot of speedy moving around the space, diving for cover, tripping one another etc. It feels like if the three stooges stumbled into a romantic comedy. Dan Pohlmann who played the character of Mouse was outstanding. Not only was his physical comedy unparalleled in the scene but his comic timing was really fantastic, he was the standout performer of a very talented bunch across the 5 plays. Battle also has a really poignant moment in which Amy admits that her inability to commit to any one of her “boyfriends” is because she is still healing from the trauma of a previous relationship and heartbreak, and she isn’t ready to put herself back in that position again. This serves as a really nice moment of realism and grounding, in what is otherwise a hilariously absurd situation.

 

 

“Playwriting is all about empathy, getting inside the head of someone who is not you, to think like they think without judging them.” - Donald Margulies

 

 

Returning from intermission, the third play of the evening was “Radio Waves” by Hunter Wall. This reviewer have had the pleasure of seeing Hunter as both a performer and director so was very excited to see how his writing would translate onto the stage and it certainly did not disappoint.

 

Radio waves was a drama focused on a relationship between two men set in what appeared to be 1980’s Australia. The name of the play also referred to a key literary device used throughout which was audio clips of moments in the gay rights movement and news surrounding it in Australia from the 50s to the present day. This served as a tool to demonstrate how the issues around the movement persist over time, even when taken into a new context. After the first two comedies of the evening this story tackled a set of much more serious issues and the tone met those expectations. During the play there were themes of suicide, alcoholism, parental abuse, bigotry and hate crime and these were all presented very maturely. Our couple Eddie and Frankie were trapped in a position where one longed to be free and declare their love to the world, whilst the other relied on the safety of privacy to go about his life, putting the two at odds.  The tone was very sombre and didn’t shy away from presenting the uncomfortable moments which added to the strength of the piece. As well as the clips that were interspersed throughout the play, the radio also added ambiance and texture to the soundscape even when clips weren’t playing through static noise and some very deliberately selected songs from the referenced time periods. In addition, the radio static and traffic noise for one particular scene did an excellent job of adding to the tension. Everything about this production was excellent, the lighting, set, costumes, props, the use of space in the staging and the crisp transitions between scenes. Clearly every aspect of the production has been carefully considered. Elijah Haze and Brandon Stevens did a very good job of playing Eddie and Frankie respectively, as they were very complex characters to play and had to deal with a lot of really intense emotions and situations. Not to take anything away from their performances, because they did an excellent job with the material, but as both actors were fairly young it challenged my suspension of disbelief. I can see a pair of older actors playing those roles to add to the realism of the piece, certainly something to consider next time this show is performed. Overall a really excellent piece of theatre.

 

 

I began as a dramatist in the theater, so I'm always thinking about how a story moves, what it looks like, how to engage the senses, how dialogue sounds, what feels authentic and sounds real, what's funny, how to build distinctive and original characters - all the aspects of playwriting, scene-building, the architecture of dramatizing. - Adriana Trigiani

 

Play numbers four and five on the playbill directed the return to a lighter mood with a pair of short comedies. “Angelique’s World” and “Don’t do Drugs (Unless They’re Free).” The first centered around the character of the title role Angelique, played delightfully by Harmony Balden-Vine. Set in what appeared to be a bedroom, the play took the form of the recording of a “Get Ready With Me” social media post. As the story progressed, bigger and bigger hints to Angelique’s character were revealed, her clothing, her choice of food and her general behaviour. The keen eyed observer would have put the pieces together quickly, that Angelique is a cat. The whole monologue was very cleverly written, seasoned with jokes and word play and faithfully replicating the style and language of a GRWM video. As the story progressed, Angelique felt comfortable sharing a little more about her past to her faithful viewers which allowed her to show her vulnerable side. Generally very funny and heart-warming, the character and situation were both amusing and relatable.

 

Don’t Do Drugs focused on the situation of a drug sting. Our two characters, Molly and Greg, began by meeting on a park bench, each equipped with a duffel bag. The initial behavior of our characters was tense, as to be expected, with neither trusting the other. This framework allowed for a number of jokes, puns and subversion of the situation which was very funny. In particular the contrast in personality and costume between the two, Greg in a very casual and colorful ensemble and Molly in dark, functional clothing added to this. Molly played the “straighter” of the two characters, more serious and focused, whilst Greg offered all kinds of awkward jokes, misinterpretations etc. As the story developed the two both threatened to the other that they each might be cops, and during a moment of tension, each drew a gun on the other, claiming to be police. Molly, the actual cop, was not impressed by Greg’s, admittedly hilarious, tiny toy sherriff badge which he presented to prove that he was a police officer. The tension subsided with a few more jokes and the suggestion that Greg was trying to perform some super-hero vigilante justice. As Molly relaxed and was allowing Greg to leave, our final punch line was a moment of physical comedy, as bags of white powder tumbled out of Greg’s duffle bag and the scene cut to black.

 

My only responsibility as a playwright and a storyteller is to give you the time of your life in the theatre. - Lin-Manuel Miranda

 

Overall the plays, writing, staging, technical choices and performances were all very enjoyable. At times I forgot that I was watching amateur productions and I can imagine that with further development, workshopping and input, all 5 of these plays could be staged again in the future to even greater success.

 

Finally to reiterate what I said before, it’s wonderful to know that there is a space and company where talent like this is being fostered and developed. For some this was a first foray into writing, directing and performing and I truly hope that these folks are all hooked and working on the next one.