Crave - WA Youth Theatre Company (3 June 2016)

The West Australian Youth Theatre Company (WAYTCo) plays a pivotal role in fostering the State’s young talent not only in performance but in commissioning new work such as On The Face of Things recently seen at Fringe World. Checking the programme for Crave, its members also fill the key crew positions under director Renato Fabretti. It’s a great opportunity for the next generation of actors and theatre makers to tackle challenging works and present them in quality venues such as the State Theatre Centre. Interestingly, there is an influx of students from Curtin University, another great hub of burgeoning theatrical endeavour.

Previous WAYTCo productions of note in the last few years include Mine, the self-devised Wind, Another Twin, the explosive Punk Rock, and Hellie Turner’s ANZAC themed The Dreaming Hill. All have introduced exciting new talent while presenting productions incorporating themes that resonant with their key demographic.

Crave is perhaps the most complex iteration of this intent. Playwright Sarah Kane’s storytelling, while rhythmic and lyrical, is oblique and confronting. Its content touches on our darker impulses while exploring isolation, loss, obsessive love and how traits handed down from generation to generation cripple and empower us. Four characters, assigned only a letter, present their stories and occasionally interact with each other verbally. There is almost no movement other than a turned head, the odd hand gesture. Each actor faces the audience on a slightly raised platform rooted to the spot. They are exposed, vulnerable, having only their voice, their eyes, and complete trust in their fellow actors as rhythm and cadence here is everything. A dropped line, an unintentional pause would act like a domino effect to ruin the symphony of cascading thoughts. There is one lengthy monologue delivered by A that would otherwise mark him as the main character. But this play is the sum of all its fractured parts.

I was fortunate enough to briefly witness a rehearsal a couple of weeks ago. What impressed was the focus on those rhythms in the writing. On imparting emphasis and meaning in the generally short, sharp exchanges that bounce off each other. There is a lot of point and counterpoint; opposing declarations and thought bubbles; unexpected confessions. It is precise and exacting.

For the run Fabretti has chosen to have alternating casts. Ally Harris doubled up as C due to the other actress being unavailable for reasons that highlight the quality of young performers amongst their ranks. On opening night Harris was joined by Luke Binetti as A, George Ashforth as B and Megan Hollier as M. The other cast features Declan Brown (A), Odne Stenseth (B) and Daisy Coyle (M).

How then to review a show that is unique in writing, style and presentation? Where the actors do not move, where their characters have no names, and their stories are fragmented and tenuously intertwined. A matter further complicated by a lighting design that for a large portion of the opening night production saw the actors’ eyes cast in shadow. This surely was unintentional and will be corrected during the rest of the run as it robbed the audience of a key weapon in the actors’ arsenal.

Given its construction this is a hive organism and the four actors worked well as a unit. The rhythm and pace was quickly established and never faltered. The diction and enunciation was clear. Luke Binetti is a fine young actor who burst onto the scene with Punk Rock and consolidated his presence in The Dreaming Hill. George Ashforth has emerged as a key player at the Hayman Upstairs at Curtin with his recently penned Everyone Is Gone Except Me adding another string to his artistic bow. Crave served as an introduction to Ally Harris and Megan Hollier and on the strength of this I look forward to seeing what they do next.

Of the alternate cast, Declan Brown excelled in Punk Rock and 2015 Fringe World production Metalhead and is another actor with a bright future. Daisy Coyle continues to do good work at Curtin and I was encouraged to see her involved with WAYTCo. I am not familiar with Odne Stenseth but given the pedigree of his fellow performers and Fabretti’s track record I have no doubt he will hit the mark here.

This is the second time I have seen Crave as Curtin actually did it a couple of years ago. I can’t say it’s a play I particularly warm to but as a showcase for the discipline and precision required by the actors it is a worthy addition to WAYTCo’s canon.

Written by Sarah Kane, directed by Renato Fabretti and starring Declan Brown, Odne Stenseth, Ally Harris, Daisy Coyle, Luke Binetti, George Ashforth, and Megan Hollier, Crave is on at State Theatre Centre until 11 June.

The Dreaming Hill - Western Australian Youth Theatre Company & Southern Edge Arts (15 April 2015)

One hundred years ago our youth were asked to fight a terrible war far beyond our shores at immeasurable cost - soldiers as young as 14 died on the Gallipoli Peninsula and later on the fields of France and Belgium. In this centenary year, a year that will see many commemorations to honour the deeds of those men and women who served both at home and abroad, it is particularly fitting that the Western Australian Youth Theatre Company (WAYTCo) in partnership with Southern Edge Arts commissioned this original play. Written by Hellie Turner, The Dreaming Hill explores the day before that fateful landing on 25 April 1915.

The cast of predominantly teenagers from both companies - including a 14 and 15 year old – was a powerful reminder that in another age these were the very people who served our country as soldiers and nurses in the chaos of ‘the war to end all wars’. The tragedy of what followed was captured eloquently in a line delivered by a Greek fisherman to a young Australian serviceman – “only dead men see an end to war.” The fact that we still put young men and women in harm’s way to this very day illustrates the point. The clear message was to us as an audience, as a community and as a country to never forget the cost exacted to protect our freedoms. 

The play follows five Australian diggers and four nurses with their Matron as they spend a last day on the Greek island of Lemnos before the amphibious assault. They encounter various locals including the aforementioned fisherman, Spyros (Luke Binetti); a good-natured shyster, Ascesto (Lachlan McGregor), who promises girls, grog and garlic while protecting the honour of his beautiful sister Phoebe (Liannah Prior); with a haughty ‘witch’ (Zali Stipanicev) thrown in for good measure. There are portents of impending doom from the flock of crows that fly overhead to a speech by Spyros about chaos. For the lads though there is a mix of excitement, apprehension, and naivety which is beautifully counterpointed by the nurses who know (and have trained for) the deadly ramifications of what is about to come. The hospital ship that they will shortly return to is another potent symbol by its very presence offshore.

The script by Turner is lyrical and poetic with one of the soldiers, Leo (Campbell Greenock) himself a ‘philosopher-warrior’ quoting Shakespeare, reciting his own attempts at poetry, and having conversations with Spyros about Homer’s The Illiad. The beauty of the island and its people is nicely conveyed as is all the exuberance and impetuousness of youth. But the script never loses sight of what is to come with references to Death, Chaos and symbolism like The Ferryman intruding. In the most powerful sequence, the fragile romance and tenderness on display at the end of the party is torn apart by a flash forward to only a few hours hence with sickening detail. It is wonderful piece of theatre as we have come to identify and even care about these characters only to have their possible futures blown apart before our eyes. Equally impressive is the company intoning each of their character’s fate on the day and beyond in a chilling postscript.

The acting is very strong across the board – from the innocent flirtatiousness of the nurses played by Daisy Coyle, Mikayla Merks and Tahlia Norrish to the over-exaggerated accent of the New Zealand nurse (Michaela Barker) used for comic relief. Tess McKenna reins in their antics as the stern Matron and is decisive and calm as the glimpse of battle shows us the grim reality of war.

Greenock opens the play by walking onto the impressive outdoor set as a modern day teenager before stripping down and changing into his uniform. It was a potent message – what would it be like to step into their shoes given all we now know. He gave a well measured performance that grounded the more poetic elements within the context of the horror to come. He has a particularly fine moment with a rallying speech towards the end of the play exhorting the men to “go forth” as the time of battle draws ever nearer. The only slight drawback was the string of lights in front of him that had lowered for part of the party sequence that cast shadows over and partly obscured his face from my vantage point. 

Liam Longley’s and Thomas Blowffwitch’s characters both try their luck with romance, Longley to sweet effect; Blowffwitch’s to amusing reversal. Andrew Phillips was a stout physical presence as Frank which made sense on reading the program notes to see he has served with the Australian Army – his bearing and demeanour was perfect for the character. While not as accomplished, Austen Faulkner’s Harry was the decent kid from Fremantle out of his depth in both war and love but had some nice moments all the same.

 

The standouts for me were Binetti and McGregor, the former working well with Greenock as they discussed Aristotle and Homer and the nature of war and chaos. Binetti has that intangible quality that makes him eminently watchable even when prowling on the outskirts of the set. McGregor, on crutches no less after breaking his ankle a fortnight ago, was sly and mischievous, providing a lot of humour to lighten the stark knowledge of these people’s likely fate.

Director Renato Fabretti makes full use of the set as his actors clamber over sandbag emplacements and literally feel the soil under their feet. There was a tendency in the party sequence, however, as soldiers and nurses paired off, for the actors not in whatever featured duo was talking, to be impassively waiting for ‘their turn’. Live music is provided for atmosphere to one side of what really is a thrust arrangement with the audience enclosing two sides of the courtyard at the Museum. External street noise was minimal and not too invasive, even from the movie playing on the big screen in the cultural centre.

Overall this was a wonderfully acted, evocatively written, and well directed play that looked at a brief moment of joy and discovery before being wrenched into the horrible reality of war. That it was performed by actors the very age of the men and women being portrayed gives it special significance and it is a thoughtful and powerful addition to the ANZAC canon.

Directed by Renato Fabretti, Written by Hellie Turner and starring Michaela Barker, Luke Binetti, Thomas Blowffwitch, Daisy Coyle, Austen Faulkner, Campbell Greenock, Liam Longley, Lachlan McGregor, Tess McKenna, Mikayla Merks, Tahlia Norrish, Andrew Phillips, Liannah Prior, Sam Reeves and Zali Stipanicev, The Dreaming Hill runs until 18 April in the WA Museum courtyard before moving to the Albany Museum 23-26 April.  

Punk Rock - WA Youth Theatre Company (16 October 2014)

If you’re going to run into walls best do it full tilt.

That’s exactly what director Renato Fabretti and his talented cast of young actors have done in every sense with this uncompromising play. I had not seen the WAAPA version earlier in the year and, having never read the play, did not know what was in store.

What unfolded at the Subiaco Arts Centre studio was a slow burn production that was shocking, uncomfortable and powerful. It elicited several visceral responses from the audience as it built to a brutal climax and then lingered in the aftermath to let us all breathe again. That the cast was predominantly made up of young teenagers was remarkable.

The story itself starts innocently enough – students in an English school common room discussing their mock exams, the teachers, and each other with the usual group dynamics and hierarchies firmly in place. There is the inquisitive William (Luke Binetti) who is keen on the smart new girl Lily (Chelsea Gibson) who will turn down his request for a date because she’s secretly seeing the suave Nicholas (Sven Ironside) who is mates with bully Bennett (Declan Brown). Bennett takes particular delight in picking on quiet intellectual Chadwick (William Everett-Knight) while the meek Tanya (Claire Thomas) occasionally cops his ire as well. Bennett’s girlfriend Cissy (Naomi Denny) is powerless to control him as indeed is everyone else who appear paralysed in the face of his escalating antics. Until one of them makes a stand and matters spiral out of control in horrific fashion.

The decision to not have an intermission is a critical one. As the tension builds I quickly come to realise that what at first seems like typical teenage antics is going to mutate into something far more primal and disturbing. The seating configuration means the audience is right on top of these characters and the confined space adds to the pressure cooker atmosphere. A break would have leached out that gnawing sense of impending dread. Instead there is no respite as the stakes are ratcheted up and we’re right there with the characters. It’s exhilarating and draining in the best possible way.

The external expectations of parents, test scores and their own personal ambitions be it Oxford or Cambridge pile on the pressure for these teenagers but it’s their isolation from the school body that is telling. In this hermetically sealed world of the common room their worst instincts can run amok as secrets are revealed, lies exposed, true character traits hinted at, and monstrous acts born of dispassion are allowed to flourish.

In this Declan Brown gives a wonderful performance as the utterly loathsome bully Bennett. He is a physical presence that intimidates all of the others but it’s his use of pointed sarcasm and humour that hits home early before he goes too far with his humiliation of Chadwick. He has a beat with Thomas’ Tanya that was utterly unexpected and had me gasping. It’s such a brave moment from both performers and was a clear signpost of how far this production might dare to take the escalating psychological and physical violence. At one point when Bennett was in full flight and none of the characters would even look at him let alone challenge his behaviour I wanted to get out of my seat and clock him one. Kudos, Mister Brown.

The main target of Bennett’s rage is given a moment of quiet dignity and respect as Everett-Knight delivers a fascinating monologue about the true nature of mankind immediately after Chadwick is debased in sickening fashion. It’s a highlight as he neither flees nor resorts to any forlorn attempt at retaliation other than to express his contempt for Bennett as representative of our inevitable worst aspects as a species.

Gibson is intriguing as the smart and engaging Lily. She is playful and clever in the opening scenes but slowly teases out a darker undertone as Lily’s sexual relationship with Nicholas is revealed and she appears quite callous at times to the feelings of others, notably William. Ironside is all charm as Nicholas and works well with Gibson in their more intimate moments. Denny adds sass and attitude as Cissy though that front is easily pricked by her boyfriend’s bluster. Thomas' Tanya is maybe the one true innocent even though the character's delusions about being in love with one of the teachers and wanting to have his babies hints that all of these characters are fundamentally flawed. Together they are a fuse away from exploding.

Then there is seventeen year old Binetti who gives a spellbinding performance as William. Initially he appears to be the good-natured nerd, full of questions and hopelessly out of his depth in attempting to woo Lily. We gradually see that he has his own delusions and secrets that are carefully revealed until he appears before us an entirely different prospect. For that transformation and its consequences to be handled so convincingly is a testament to Binetti’s skill.

Not only were the performances impressive I loved the sense of play throughout this. The stage ends up a complete mess as the actors use every inch of it – drawing on the walls, clambering up, under and over the tables and chairs, throwing all manner of stuff at each other, and totally inhabiting the space. They eat, drink, cavort and react spontaneously which is such a delight to see. Well done to Fabretti and his crew for letting them loose on the set. In what could have been a dialogue heavy, sit and deliver play this instead always had someone in motion or doing something interesting even if they weren’t featured in the scene. I should also state that Simon Stephens’ writing was excellent with clever dialogue and a dark sense of humour.

The penultimate scene is performed in near darkness illuminated only with a torchlight that enhances the chilling climax that was difficult yet enthralling to watch. The final scene is one that was debated after the show as structurally it felt overlong and redundant but serves the purpose of letting the audience down after the harrowing scene before it and attempts to cast some light on the reasons for what we have just witnessed. David J Rose adds support here and the cast is rounded out by a cameo from Tahlia Norrish as Lucy who also provides a live score.

WAYTCo are to be applauded for tackling such a powerful piece and doing so in a full-throated manner. Directed by Renato Fabretti and Written by Simon Stephens, Punk Rock stars Luke Binetti, Declan Brown, Naomi Denny, William Everett-Knight, Chelsea Gibson, Sven Ironside, David J Rose, Claire Thomas and Tahlia Norrish, names we can expect to hear more of in the future.