Bit of a disclaimer before this one: I’m not someone who regularly vists the thee-ah-tah like some other people in Perth may do. In fact I think this would be the first time I’ve been to see a play since back in high school and the performance of ‘Death of a Salesman’ that we were forced to endure (damn is that depressing). So forgive me if my appraisal isn’t up to the standard of a seasoned taster of the performing arts, but it’s said that every form of entertainment must appeal to every form of audience, so really there’s no need to excuse my uncouth ways. Or something like that. Anyway, moving onto the meaty bits.
The play’s title was ‘Far Away’, written by one Caryl Churchill, who hails from Britland, in 2000. I’d give you the blurb for the play that was on the program but a) we lost it in the Belgium Beer Cafe afterwards, b) it didn’t really make much sense, and c) seemed to be written based on about 1/3rd of the play anyway. Wikipedia gave me this as a synopsis:
“The play has three characters, Harper, Joan, and Todd, and is based on the premise of a world in which everything in nature is at war with each other.”
Which I guess is correct, but again really only applies specifically to the last third of the play. Seems like people are trying their hardest to ignore the first bits in favour of the more quotable/hook-inducing finale.
Before the play started, the set itself hinted at the mood of the play. Harsh, brushed, faux-metal, riveted doors loomed over the audience, with a subtle soundtrack of hissing and pneumatics in the background. When they opened, it was to the sound of booming metal-on-metal, revealing an elderly woman sewing. The woman was soon joined by a (very well played) young girl, who complained of not being able to sleep. The conversation soon turned from an innocent discussion of getting back to sleep and bed, to a disturbing admission from the girl that she had climbed out her window and seen the bodies of dead women and children in her Uncle’s shed. This is all explained away by her Aunt, in a style reminiscent of an elder persuading a child that Santa Claus is real, as being her Uncle’s way of helping people. The girl, being young and naive, accepts this. I can see this section of the play as being suggestive to the kind of blind acceptance of the superficial that is present in today’s society. We are asked by our leaders to accept their assurances that what we are doing is the right thing, while if we had the chance to ‘climb out the window’ and observe the world as it is, we may not like what ‘Aunty’ tells us. Interesting.
This scene ends with a close of the giant metal doors, and we are treated to a more gentle scene involving two characters, a man and woman, looking to be in their mid-to-late twenties, one of which we later learn is the girl from the previous scene grown up. They appear to be making something craft-like, confirmed in the ensuing awkward small talk as hats. Some kind of parade is revealed as being the reason for their craft, though the fact that they are making it as a job, and that Joan studied ‘Hat’ at university, hints that their hattery is a bit more than it might seem. The scene transitions through the time-lapse creation of their hats (i.e. they converse with their hats at a certain stage of completion, the lights dim, they swap their creation for a more progressed one, the lights brighten again and their conversation continues) and we see the two becoming closer. The male character, Todd, slowly gains the confidence to both interact with Joan more and confide in her that he believes there is something wrong with the way the money is handled in the making of their hats. Again there is a hint of an unseen higher power that everyone believes in, as Joan isn’t convinced, but she encourages him enough that he decides he will go and discuss it with their management. By the time they have finished speaking, Joan’s hat has been complete to form a blue swan-like creature, and Todd’s is a pair of punk jeans mounted on a helmet so that the legs would hang by the ears.
The next scene was both the longest and possibly the most confusing to be presented as an audience. The stage was set up a series of three ramps at varying angles, providing a path from the front of the stage to the back where a large door stands. A girl in an orange prison jumpsuit appeared to be lying down on the third of the ramps. From the left of the stage, a man in a similar orange jumpsuit and bound at the wrists shuffles slowly in, wearing a ridiculous hat. At this point I was reminded instantly of the easter hat parades that our primary school used to have. All the pre-primary kids would make a hat out of craft stuff and walk around the assembly area. Looking back at it, it was slightly ridiculous, and so was the sight of what were assumed to be prisoners shuffling despondently from one side of the stage to the other in a variety of utterly ridiculous hats. Sailing boats, lamp fittings, bonsai, Todd’s pants and Joan’s swan, flowerpots, all manner of utterly bizzarre creations mounted on the heads of these criminals. At one stage, a female prisoner falls to the ground and is offered help by by another. A warning alarm sounds and the compassionate prisoner is shot dead from some unknown location. Compassion, it seems, is not allowed. The stream of prisoners is seemingly endless, including children and the elderly, teenagers and middle ages that march up to the door before being let inside and supposedly destroyed. When one of the children reaches the door, he waits nervously, obviously not wanting to die. One of the younger men holds his hands and they step through to their death to end the scene. It was both a disturbing and utterly ridiculous scene. I believe it was supposed to have that dual nature, encouraging the audience to view the execution of these people, whose crimes we never receive any indication of, as a ridiculous farce. Something to be giggled at, at the appearance of each insane creation resting on their heads. All this contrasted with the sombre tone of the scene and the slow, regular heartbeat death of every single prisoner. Gritty stuff.
A short scene follows where we learn that Joan’s swan hat won ‘the parade’ (which we now know is some weird execution of prisoners/traitors/convicts) and will now be saved and stored in a museum. We aren’t told if this means the person wearing the hat is also saved, or if it’s just the hat that is preserved, but Joan and Todd talk only about how excited they are about her hat being the own that won, especially since Joan is only new to the job. All this further highlights the ridiculous nature of the process, in that hats are given more talk time than the death of humans. Todd and Joan are ecstatic and Todd lets Joan know he’s got an interview with the manager of their job to voice his concerns over the company. Joan promises to come with him if he is fired because of his complaint, and the scene ends.
The final scene shows Todd pacing in the house in the original scene with Joan’s Aunt still present. He is worrying over the fact that Joan has apparently not woken up since she arrived. Joan’s Aunt starts probing him on his allegiances, and why Joan has come to see him, apparently putting herself at risk. The conversation about allegiances soon turns towards the surreal, with Joan’s Aunt starting to talk about the rampages of wasps, or the allegiance of the elephants with the Dutch, or the raping of teenagers by deer. It seems that the entire world, animals, plants, even abstract concepts such as gravity, shadows, and light, is at war with each other. Joan comes down the stairs and confirms this with an account of her trip to the house to see Todd, saying she killed many ‘children under five’, and many other animals, until she came to a river. She didn’t know whose side the river was on, whether it would help her cross or drown her. The play ends with her reflecting on the moment of placing her foot in the water, the uncertainty and fear she felt.
Overall I did actually enjoy Far Away, though some of the elements meant that it wasn’t until I’d had some time to chew over everything in my mind before I really realised what was trying to be said. It’s something of a cross between 1984 and a Haruki Murakami novel; commenting on the ridiculousness of our dependance on media, government, and other authoritative powers, while presenting a world where the fantastic is made real. Recommended if you don’t mind a bit of social or political commentary with your acting.
3/5 stars