Review: THE NEW ABNORMAL – ADELAIDE FRINGE 2024 at Goodwood Theatre And Studios

Reviewed by Barry Lenny, Friday 16th February 2024.

Award-winning New York playwright, Jeff Stolzer, takes us into an apartment in New York where a couple is in lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This world premiere, presented by Virtually Creative, The New Abnormal features Orion Powell, from the UK, and Adelaide performer, Rachael Williams. Such international collaborations are one of the important features of the Fringe. This play was a winner of the 2020 Phillips’ Mill Emerging Playwrights Competition, and the 2020 Segora One Act Play Award.

As the play begins, the unnamed couple has already been confined to their apartment in self-quarantine for three weeks. The woman is, understandably, becoming depressed and frustrated, insisting that it feels more like three months that they have been locked in, while the man seems to be more relaxed about the unavoidable situation. The boredom and monotony are, though, affecting both of them. The difference is in how they are dealing with it.

As time moves ahead, over several scenes, they talk, in greater depth than they did before the pandemic hit, sometimes arguing over inconsequential things, sometimes more profound, gradually discovering more about each other, and revealing things that they had kept secret. Their relationship slowly changes and develops.

The background to their lives is the noises of the sirens as ambulances continually take more and more pandemic patients to hospital. The one break in the monotony is at 7pm nightly when New Yorkers open their windows and make noise for two minutes to recognise the efforts, and risks taken, by the essential workers who had to carry on regardless. The couple bang on a large aluminium pot as their contribution to the joyous cacophony of thanks.

There are highs and lows in their days, they distance themselves, then come together, the incarceration taking a toll on their relationship, but, in spite of their differences, they also have a mutual desire, expressing their love for each other. It is a fascinating and captivating exploration of a relationship under abnormal conditions. It is not a totally bleak portrait of life during the pandemic, though. It is a black comedy, with plenty to raise a laugh.

The pandemic, of course, affected everybody, and one of the adverse effects was the cancellation of all international travel, which meant that we lost all of our overseas Fringe artists. Thankfully, that is now behind us, and work from around the world is back for us to enjoy. This production features a well-written script, acute direction, and two fine performances. Be sure to get tickets for this one.

This work is presented and directed by that ever-popular visitor to the Fringe, Tim Marriott, who is in Adelaide performing in two pieces that sold out last year: Watson: The Final Problem, and Appraisal, with Adelaide’s own Stefanie Rossi. Last year Appraisal featured Nicholas Collett, another regular from the UK, and local performer, Emily-Jo Davidson. Be sure to catch those two excellent works, which I reviewed last year. Those reviews are here and here.