THEATRE
By Nick Jones, by Red Stitch Actors
Theatre
Red Stitch, until Aug 26, 2016
Reviewer: Kate Herbert
Stars:****
Review also published in Herald Sun Arts online on Mon Aug 1, 2016 & later in print. KH
If you think a bloke playing a primate could
not be funny and poignant, think again, because Rory Kelly’s portrayal of Trevor, the former
television star chimpanzee, is hilarious, moving and
dangerous.
Nick Jones’
play depicts Trevor as a deluded, Hollywood, has-been actor who lives with his
trainer/owner Sandra (Andrea Swifte) and is nostalgic for the glory days when
he featured in TV commercials with 80’s glamazon, Morgan Fairchild (Angela
Kennedy).
Trevor, now
a strong, adult male, is bored without his TV career, frustrated by his
inability to communicate effectively with Sandra, and confused by her garbled
language that sounds to him like gibberish occasionally peppered with words he
can recognise.
Denis
Moore directs this impressive, dynamic production with wit and assurance and Kelly’s
performance as Trevor is inspired, audacious, impeccably timed, physically
adroit and very, very funny.
Kelly is
charismatic as Trevor, playing him as an arrogant, bratty adolescent with
simian characteristics who, despite his warmth and humour, has a volatile
temper and displays an escalating belligerence that could ultimately turn to violence.
Trevor is
adorable which helps explain why Sandra insists to Ashley (Eva Seymour), her
anxious young neighbour, that Trevor is no threat to Ashley or her baby,
despite Trevor’s unpredictable outbursts and habit of pinching Sandra’s car keys
to drive her Corvette.
Jones’
fast-paced play constantly surprises with its narrative twists and emotional
rollercoaster that sees Kelly as Trevor bouncing from couch-potato depression
to wacky mania or demonstrations of his roller-skating talents and wardrobe of
costumes.
Swifte’s
motherly Sandra is a perfect counterpoint to Trevor’s hysteria and, as the
stakes heighten, Swifte’s character progressively and almost imperceptibly
loses her cool until the situation careers out of her control.
Kennedy is
a highlight as blonde bombshell, Morgan Fairchild, embodying the vanity and
sassiness of the slightly faded, iconic star.
The rest
of this talented ensemble includes Dion Mills who is a riot as Oliver, Trevor’s
pompous, wildly successful, almost human chimp friend, and the gently amusing
Andrew Gilbert as Jim, the mild-mannered and bemused local copper who tries to
help Sandra.
As Jerry,
the animal controller who Trevor mistakes for a Hollywood producer, Kevin
Hofbauer balances timidity with the bravado of a petty bureaucrat, while Seymour
is suitably insistent and confronting as Ashley, the protective mother.
This
production is rollicking entertainment that also reveals darker, riskier themes
on its helter skelter journey that threatens to fulfil all our fears for Trevor
and his companions.
By
Kate Herbert
By
Kate Herbert
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