Review: THRENODY Cuts to the Quick in New Australian Work at Old Fitz Theatre

It's the oldest story in the book. Girl trapped inside all her life seeks freedom, and upon finding it discovers a world full of danger, depravity and disaster whereupon she questions the worth and purpose of her very existence as narrated by a quintet of pithy, verbose vixens.

Ok so perhaps it's not the oldest story, but it is certainly a tried and true heroine's tale that has been given a refreshing review by Australian talent Michael McStay. Threnody swarms with wit and wordplay to exploit naivete, query judgement, and ultimately entrance audiences. A quick late-night skinny-dip in the morality pool at the Old Fitz, you won't regret it!

Produced by Emma Diaz with the Hermetic Theatre Company in partnership with Poor Tom's Gin, Threnody triumphs an all-female cast headed up by Josephine Starte as Virginia, the innocent young girl raised in Christian virtue who seeks to experience the zest of life her upbringing has lacked. Starte is solid, but has her work cut out for her to stand out from the cast of narrators clad in black. Lauren Richardson's presence is commanding, alternating smoothly between charm and derision in her roles. Georgia Wilde's energy sets her apart; from first step in the theatre she gives the essence of a caged talent, perhaps due to the intimate space of Old Fitz, beyond which she will certainly unleash in future roles of fierce and champion characters. Charlotte Devenport was similar to Wilde in her nature of deadpan comedy that hit every note of humour resoundingly, and she provided a steady bar of quality from start to finish. Conversely, Zoe Jensen brought her own brand of brash and barbarous delivery breathing a great deal of life into every corner of the stage she occupied. Alex Malone had all the looks of Kat Dennings' Amanda Seyfried impression, but trounces both for talent. She is the kind of performer you can't take your eyes off, by virtue of the charisma and complexity she uses expression, movement and voice to envelop purpose as much as character.

What McStay has achieved here is a microcosm of the millennial experience, and made a solid effort to subvert the stereotypical passivity of the archetypal female lead character. What makes Threnody a valuable component of the Contemporary Theatre landscape is that McStay does not attempt to completely flip the role of the central woman, but provide her with a diverse and powerful context, provided by the remainder of the cast in various voices and roles. This review will do no more gender musing other than to finally say, by providing a somewhat passive character with a dynamic and independent inner working, Threnody dismisses that the solution for patriarchy is for women to be more like men, but suggests the solution might be for men to understand women more distinctively, respectfully and without their own voices or presence involved. Ok, moving on.

Beyond the talented and well-calibrated ensemble, McStay's text is something this reviewer sincerely hopes marks a new wave of high-intellect, part Noel Coward part Frasier Crane writing that tessellates humour, depth and dynamism with precision and stateswomanship. The tale of The Devil, the Priest and the Traveller will stay with me a long darn time, and I hope to meet this great group of creatives someday so they can tell it to me again.

Tickets available here.
Images by Tom Cramond.

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