Reminding Us Yet Again That War, And Its Aftermath, Is Hell
The Age
Tuesday November 27, 2007
MOTORTOWN
By Simon Stephens, Red Stitch Actors Theatre, Running time: 100 minutes Till December 22, www.redstitch.net IN CASE you hadn't realised already, war strips the lodestone from our moral compass. That's the essential message in Simon Stephens' 2006 play Motortown, the final production of Red Stitch's season this year. Motortown covers a day in the life of Danny (Brett Cousins), a British soldier returned from a tour of duty in Iraq, whose failure to re-integrate into his old social networks descends into a nightmare of violence and depravity.Stephens acknowledges the influence of classic texts in this genre, including Buechner's Woyzeck and Scorsese's Taxi Driver, yet it is hard to escape the sense that we have seen all the scenes in this play many times before. Likewise, most of the characters Danny encounters during his day are stereotypes from British television, whose single cameo scenes don't allow for much development. Red Stitch's production nevertheless develops a vice-like grip on our attention through strong direction and the intense and committed performances that are a company hallmark.Director Lawrence Strangio locates the drama firmly in the theatre of cruelty, with total blackouts and extended Pinter pauses. The pauses highlight the lack of direction in the characters' lives, while helping generate tension at key points. Strangio also has cast members sit on stage after their scenes, forcing them - and by implication the audience - to remain as witnesses to the unfolding tragedy of Danny's moral implosion.Cousins gives one of his better performances for Red Stitch, allowing us to feel sympathy for Danny's plight, without resorting to histrionics or melodrama. The rest of the cast add just enough, without displacing Danny's central role. There are nice touches from Dion Mills as Danny's brother Lee, and Cleo Coleman as the inevitable victim Jade.Despite Motortown's cliched material, this is a story that needs to be constantly told. Perhaps it's time for our cultural storytellers to turn their attention to Timor, Iraq and Afghanistan.
© 2007 The Age