Review: LIGHTEN UP is a Brilliant Dark Comedy About a Very Grey Area at Griffin Theatre

The final independent production of the year at Griffin Theatre certainly has their year going out with a bang in Lighten Up, a tongue-through-cheek pummelling of racist stereotyping, the entertainment industry, metaphysics and Aussie lunacy. Written by Nicholas Brown and Sam McCool, Lighten Up was quick-fire and zero-point sharp at poking fun toward the prejudices running rampant in Australia's social and political climates, more acutely of late.

Lighten Up has all the potential of being timeless in its critique of how we view cultures not just international, but home-grown as well. Telling the story of John Green, a young man trying to get on an Aussie soap despite the obstacles his darker skin presents not only to the industry, but to support from his mother and girlfriend. Calling on the spirit of 40s actress Merle Oberon, Green seeks help to achieve his dream, bringing the truth about his heritage to light, introducing him to Sandy, an Indigenous woman comfortable in her skin, and a dubious director with the chance to make him a star. Interlaced with musical numbers, a slew of comedy characters and more Indian puns than I could laugh about without going straight to hell, Lighten Up is worth a Listen Up.

Nicholas Brown is a phenomenally accomplished artist, and Sam McCool a seasoned entertainer, both of whom appear to have experienced the stereotyping and prejudices of their characters, which makes for very potent and empowering wavelengths of tension in the production. The sense that art mimics life is a very powerful tool for change, particularly for organisations like Griffin Theatre that have the power to influence forthcoming generations of artists. The perforation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous black people experiencing prejudice is coming under more refined scrutiny, and Katie Beckett's performance made for a character audiences should be hungry for: confident, entrepreneurial and stable women who won't stand for bulL. Beckett and Brown's chemistry was palpable, for all that their relationship is not one we see much representation of. Bishanyia Vincent perpetuates her reputation for comedy genius in the production, taking her sense of vocal comedy and skewering Aussie inner-westycism. Vivienne Garrett as the Caucasian-supremacist mother Bronwyn played her part well, though her transition worked a touch too conveniently for her character's resolution to have as much impact as it might. It was clear that Lighten Up remains a flexible work that will grow with audiences and experience refinement in its future; all the reason to catch it now at its boldest.

Director & Dramaturg Shane Anthony has taken a busy script and drawn out the elements that clarify the real points that are at times danced around, theatrically and literally. Although the vision for set was pared back, perhaps to avoid adding any more elements to an already packed-tight premise, the sound by Busty Beatz really hit the mark for energy, and costumes by Tobhiyah Stone Feller worked in with the comedy and pace to add plenty of laughs.

Lighten Up is the place to take your self-righteousness and post-modern sensitivities for a check-up. It's sure to shock, delight and provoke, but from the right perspective: the lived experience. As well as their clear performance talents, Brown and McCool have brought genuine humour to a serious systemic issue in this country, the tension around which Lighten Up both alleviates and reenergises for the battles big and small faced by diverse communities. An admirable and entertaining effort.

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