THEATRE
The Removalists by David Williamson, Melbourne Theatre Company
At Southbank Theatre, The Sumner, until 17 April 2025
Reviewer: Kate Herbert
Stars: **** (4)
This review is published only on this blog. I’ll present a radio review on Arts Weekly on 3MBS on Sat 5 April 2025. KH
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| MTC The Removalists - Michael Whalley and Steve Mouzakis - Photo by Pia Johnson |
David Williamson's The Removalists has lost none of its impact since its first production in 1971 at the tiny La Mama Theatre; it is still a vigorous, brutal and unflinchingly honest depiction of societal issues, male violence, marital abuse and police corruption.
In this 2025 production for MTC, Anne Louise Sarks’ tight and compelling direction creates a visceral, uncomfortable experience that sees simmering tension between characters erupt into shocking violence.
Williamson's script exposes the ugliness lurking beneath the veneer of suburban normality and lays bare the insidious nature of police corruption, the pervasiveness of domestic violence, and the suffocating grip of what was then called macho male behaviour and is now referred to as toxic masculinity. The play cunningly incorporates comic dialogue, particularly in earlier scenes, that distracts the audience so that the ensuing drama is a rude shock.
Sarks' direction amplifies these themes, never shying away from the play's raw, emotional power, while the banality of the staging captures the ordinariness of the suburban world within which these personal dramas unfold.
The characters are trapped in the closed, almost claustrophobic environments of a two-man police station and a modest home within which the unease builds steadily until the inevitable, devastating climax.
The performances are compelling, consistent and nuanced, but accolades must go to Steven Mouzakis who plays, with chilling calm, the deceptively easy-going but menacing Sergeant Simmonds whose overbearing presence pervades both the police station and the home. Mouzakis balances the comic elements of Simmonds dialogue with the grim reality of his behaviour.
William McKenna embodies pathetic, youthful bluster of Constable Ross who finally loses his rag; Eloise Mignon portrays the desperate vulnerability of Fiona while Michael Whalley is muscular and aggressive as her bogan husband, Kenny, and Jessica Clarke captures her sister Kate’s confidence, defiance and confrontational attitude to bombastic men.The female characters, however, are not fully rounded, perhaps because the play's focus is on the male characters.
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| MTC The Removalists - Steve Mouzakis and William McKenna - Photo by Pia Johnson |
While all this passion and aggression unfolds, Martin Blum’s removalist is a still point on stage; the objective observer, the disinterested, task-driven removalist who has a job to do and nothing, not even brutality and abuse, will stop him moving that sofa.
The violence, when it erupts, is more shocking because of its stark realism and the contrast with the earlier humour. It's not gratuitous, but rather a horrifying depiction of the consequences of misogyny and abuse of authority.
The Removalists is a powerful, thought-provoking play that holds a mirror up to society, reflecting a deeply flawed system. It confronts uncomfortable truths and the structures that enable such brutality. Sarks' direction highlights the play's enduring relevance, reminding us that these issues, unfortunately, continue to plague our world.
By Kate Herbert
Cast
Steven Mouzakis - Sergeant Simmonds
William McKenna - Constable Ross
Eloise Mignon – Fiona
Jessica Clarke – Kate
Michael Whalley - Kenny
Martin Blum – Removalist
Creative Team
David Williamson – Writer
Anne-Louise Sarks – Director
Dale Ferguson – Set Designer
Matilda Woodruffe – Costume Designer
Niklas Pajanti- Lighting Designer
Marco-Cher Gibard – Composer & Sound Designer
Nigel Poulton – Fight Designer
Amy Cater – Intimacy Coordinator.
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