1950's Hell's Kitchen Brought to Life in Novel Theatrical Experience

NINE actors, 46 characters and one boys' fight all add up to The Actors' Hub's latest show at the Subiaco Arts Centre.

Written by Lewis John Carlino and directed by Adam Mitchell, The Brick and The Rose is set in the 1950s and follows the story of one boy from his birth in the Bronx to his untimely death.

In a time of hope for many immigrants and first generation New Yorkers, it's supposed to be the start of something better - but the city has a secret.

Drug addiction, prostitution, poverty and gang warfare form an underworld of sleaze and violence, enticing many hopefuls before slowly dragging them under.

The Brick and The Rose introduces 46 characters who live in the shadow of the city - workers, immigrants, teachers and drug lords - and races through 20 years in the life of Tommy De Santo in just under an hour.

Playwright Carlino is best known as the director of The Great Santini starring Robert Duvall and has worked as a director and screenwriter on the films I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, Resurrection, The Mechanic and The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea.

Mitchell said The Brick and The Rose was originally written as "a collage of voices".

"It's a type of radio play where the illusion of physical action was created through voice and expression alone," he said.

"We have used this as our jumping off point and then taken the play into a more physical reality.

"We are hoping to capture the energy, vitality and addiction of New York to bring the dicey streets of 1950s Hell's Kitchen to life."

Known for his inventive Contemporary Theatre productions, Mitchell is an award-winning theatre director and was previously the associate and resident director for BLACK SWAN State Theatre Company, as well as artistic director of BLACK SWAN's HotBed Ensemble.

He regularly directs theatre, opera and musical theatre for the WA Academy of Performing Arts and has worked with the Sydney and Melbourne Theatre Companies, Playwriting Australia, Australian Theatre for Young People and is a member of the Lincoln Centre Theater Directors Lab in New York.

Mitchell also has numerous best direction and best production awards to his credit, including Equity Guild Awards, Blue Room Theatre Best Production Awards, Performing Arts WA Awards and the Martin Sims Award.

"Directing The Brick and The Rose is a retrospective for me," he said. "The Actors' Hub has given me a wonderful opportunity to revisit the work I originally staged in 1999, which toured through WA and Victoria.

"At that time, more than 4000 students saw the production and were drawn into the filmic quality of performances and coming-of-age narrative.

"I'm glad to say the play has stood the test of time and is still as moving and funny as when we read it in the '90s.

"It is set to be a thrilling and unusual experience for our audience."

The Brick and The Rose plays at 7.30pm November 24, 25 and 26. Tickets are $30, $25 concession - book atwww.ticketek.com.au.

The Subiaco Arts Centre is at 180 Hamersley Road, Subiaco. For more details, go to http://actorshubperth.com.au/productions.

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