Malthouse Presents
The Good Person of
Szechuan
By Bertold Brecht
Direction - Meng
Jinghui
New translation by
Tom Wright
Set and Costume
Design – Marg Horwell
Lighting Design –
Richard Vabre
Composition and
Sound THE SWEATS
Cast: Aljin Abella, Moira Finucane, Daniel
Frederiksen, Genevieve Giuffre, Bert LaBonte, Emily Milledge, Genevieve Morris,
Josh Price and Richard Pyros
Merlyn Theatre
27 June – 20 July 2014
Brecht as current
and relevant as ever!
As touted in the
media release this production: ‘In the hands of avant-garde Chinese
theatre-maker Meng Jinghui, Bertold Brecht’s morality play about the
exploitative power of capitalism will erupt as a cross-cultural, entirely
contemporary, theatre experience.’ And
yes riddled with Brechtian irony and highlighting his wisdom this production is
set to fulfill expectations and more. It
is one of those rare shifts in Theatre that supersedes much of the rest, a
unique and potent show, the type as audience, we are perpetually on the look
out for. All creative aspects come
together fittingly in the hands of Director Meng Jinghui.
To purge some adjectives
first - energetic, invigorating, exciting, vital, relevant, probing, punchy,
edgy, visceral, loud and in-your-face.
Whatever! This production of The
Good Person of Szechuan is a long, but highly charged, classy piece of
solid and impressive, smartly produced Theatre.
It is full of ‘eye candy’ and keeps one engaged and thinking.
Good Person of Szechuan is about Shen Te (Moira Finucane) a prostitute whom,
although given a leg up by ‘The Gods’, is perpetually in danger of being
exploited by the unscrupulous in an underworld of seething poverty. To protect herself and her unborn child, and
ultimately, to thrive she takes on a second persona of a male cousin Shui Ta
who manages to flourish in a grimy cruel world of rancid poverty and drug
trafficking.
This production
clearly poses the focal question - is it possible to be wholly good in cultures
that are, at heart or perhaps heartlessly, driven by economics? At the same time we are reminded that lives
in a community intertwine and influence outcomes for all.
And yes Brecht’s ‘alienation
affect’ is honored. Also, paradoxically
is his perceptive eye for sentimentality and our tendency to yearn for a happy
ending. We are denied catharsis, but its
possibility is signposted, a number of times throughout. And this serves to heighten the desire to be
embroiled in, of all things, a Cinderella Story.
The casting is
nothing short of inspired the actors work evenly as a swift and smooth team on
a vast set (Meg Horwell). Moira Finucaine
plays the male and female sides of the same coin to a T without being superfluous
to depict gender distinction. Aljin
Abella delights with his endearing characterization of Shu Fu through feisty
physicality and light humorous touches.
The three, sharp, idiosyncratic, yet lazy gods are played by Genevieve
Giuffre, Emily Milledge and Genevieve Morris who also double as characters in
the community. Daniel Frederiksen
embodies a self-serving sleaze Yang Sun with convincing credibility.
The finely
integrated musical score is adroitly pitched (pardon the pun). It is partly DJ’ed and partly played live
from a booth on the floor by THE SWEATS/Pete Goodwin. Thus, it, underpins a sense of immediacy and
innovative freshness - complementing the radical imagery and wacky buffoonery
throughout.
Get a ticket now –
you will kick yourself if you miss it!
Suzanne Sandow
(For Stage Whispers)
