Review: COSI at Hutt Repertory

Cosi is a play by Australian playwright Louis Nowra, first performed in 1992 at the Belvoir St Theatre in Sydney. The play is set in a Melbourne mental institution in 1971 and is semi-autobiographical, serving as a sequel to Nowra's earlier work "Summer of the Aliens".

The story revolves around a young director named Lewis, who is tasked with directing a production of Mozart’s opera “Così fan tutte” with a group of patients from the mental institution. Through this process, Lewis learns about love, loyalty and the complexities of human relationships, while also dealing with the backdrop of the Vietnam War protests.

Cosi is a blend of both comedy and drama. While it has many humorous moments, it also delves into serious themes such as mental illness, love and the struggles of the characters within the institution. This was handled well by a cast of 11, all of whom were well cast and directed by Erin Howell.

There were times the play was uncomfortable, especially for me when Doug (Daniel Williams) told the story of why he was in the institute and also when Zac (Ants Heath) when stressed, overdosed and staggered around the stage before eventually passing out,

There were lighter moments and the personalities of the residents shone through. Cherry (Lena Walsh) was a delight as the quirky inmate who took a shine to the director and became rather too overprotective. I also enjoyed the performance of Julie (Sarah Williams) who was a recovering drug addict, She was totally believable in her role, as was Roy (Scott Ransom) who is the resident who wanted the director to put on Cosi fan tutte from the start and then set about criticising everything he did. Lewis, the director (Daniel Tanner) and Roy are the key roles in this play and the interactions between them were well played.

Lighting was unobtrusive yet effective and the set was well designed and constructed. I really liked the costuming in this production-it fit well with the period.

A talented ensemble made this play well worth seeing. You will laugh, you may feel uncomfortable, but ultimately, you will be entertained. Tickets are available following the link.

One more thing, the seats at 108 Oxford Terrace used to be mighty uncomfortable, the new ones are fabulous!

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