By Jackie Smith at La Mama until June16
Reviewer: Kate
Herbert
In an Australian
country town, secrets, prejudices and lies have festered since Lizzy ( Liz Welch)
left town twelve years ago.
The Aliens was co-winner
of the Patrick White Playwright's Award in 2001. It is a naturalistic play written
by Jackie Smith and directed by Peta Murray. There are glaring
problems with both the script and the direction and performances are uneven.
Peta Murray's direction
is static and the pace and timing too slow. The design by Jane Murphy leaves the actors too little space to
move.
The
concept of the play has potential and Smith writes some funny and successful dialogue.
However,
the plot seems contrived and the
resolution of the story is unsatisfactory. Information is repeated and there is
little dynamic action. Most of the dramatic action takes place off stage in the
past.
Characters have no emotional journey and are not fully rounded or credible. Lizzy's revelation at the end of the play is clearly inconsistent with the character as she is established.
Lizzy visits Mr
Little, ( Don Munro) an old and
ailing man whose daughter, Julie, committed suicide recently. Living with
Wilson are Iris, ( Shirley Cattunar ) his housekeeper, and her intellectually
disabled daughter, Deidre (Jackie Smith).
Deidre, Julie and
Liz were childhood playmates. There is a bond between the two girls still living,
in spite of the years passing and their intellectual differences.
Liz Welch Lizzy, is
credible despite the inconsistencies in Smith's writing of the character's
behaviour. Deidre is an interesting
character but difficult to play and Smith struggles with her portrayal of a
disabled woman.
Munro is
entertaining as Mr. Little, but is at times inaudible and underplayed this sick
old man. Cattunar has a difficult job playing the irascible and dislikeable Iris
who has few redeeming features.
The play is loo long
and the plot not quite credible. In the end, we do not care about any of the
characters.
By Kate Herbert
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