One thing the lockdown has proven (as though there was any doubt) is that theatre lovers do it for just that. The love. Actors want to act, directors want to direct, techies want to design and operate and audiences want to see. One of the first venues to re-open with a Covid plan in place is the Flight Path Theatre in Marrickville. It has had many incarnations and for many years it has been a venue dedicated to bringing new work to life, to allowing for experiments and voices to play out in ways which are simply not possible with the larger spaces and companies; and all credit is due to Kate Bookallil and Siobhan Lawless who fought to hold on through 2020.
The second production on offer is Crying Chair Theatre’s The Confessions of Jeremy Perfect by Sandra Fairthorne; a production set to open just as lockdown was imposed. This is a plot driven piece examining the nature of family relationships in the 21st century. Performances across the cast have equal presence and provide a strong sense of ensemble, if lacking a sense of connectedness. Gil Balfas is Jeremy Perfect (who other characters substantially called Jerry, which was initially confusing), a writer with an anxiety disorder which his wife and new mother Rosa (Mel Day) attempt to keep under control with medication. Living with them is her humanitarian sister Annie (Emma Dalton) and his brother (Josh Shediak) and his girlfriend Simone (Andrea Mudbidri). The use of “his” is deliberately obfuscatory, as that is one of the premises of the play.
Physically, Flight Path offers very few staging challenges, so it was a little disappointing to see the play presented in a very literal manner, with some awkward, and perhaps unnecessary, blocking choices made to accommodate the audience on two sides. A space like this needs to have it shape embraced, rather than fought against. The play would be better served with some more imaginative physicality.
It was a pleasure to see every one of the available limited seats taken. So many small companies, without the kudos and support that big name companies attract, have gone to the wall. Time to pay them all back for the years of joy they have brought us and get out there and see some theatre.
Kate Stratford – On The Town
