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Josh McConville, Caroline Craig and Robin Goldsworthy. |
William Zappa, Robin Goldsworthy and Josh McConville. |
POSTED: 20 SEPTEMBER 2011 Loot, by Joe Orton | Directed by Richard Cottrell Sydney Theatre Company | Sydney Opera House, Circular Quay, Sydney | Until 23 October Loot is a Joe Orton’s two-act 1964 farce which follows the fortunes of two young thieves, Hal and Dennis. They’ve just robbed the bank next to the funeral parlour where Dennis works and return to Hal’s to stash the cash. Hal’s mother has just died and they decide to hide the dosh in the coffin — as you do! When Inspector Truscott arrives on the scene to sniff out the loot, the corpse is macabrely rotated about the house and the stage business is established.
Mr McLeavy (William Zappa) is an innocent pensioner mourning the death of his wife. Zappa’s performance is suitably subtle and understated, allowing the manic mayhem to play out. Caroline Craig is the starchy, serial-killer nurse who murdered Mrs McLeavy and plans to marry Mr McLeavy for his money. She is suitably predatory but struggled to establish the truly femme fatale aspect of the character, instead embracing Orton’s stylised dialogue a little too much. Hal and Dennis are the high-spirited, cheeky cockney criminals. Hal’s laziness and sullen stupidity is suitably captured by Robin Goldsworthy, and Josh McConville’s shrewd Dennis is a superb rendition of the anti-social. These two likely lads establish the hectic pace needed for the farcical caper. Darren Gilshenan as Truscott steals the show. He is a mixture of Sherlock Holmes, Inspector Clouseau and Basil Fawlty, but a mad, megalomaniac to boot. “It’s for your own good that authority behaves in this seemingly alarming way,” Truscott tells us. Gilshenan almost dances his way through this role, so mesmerising are his mannerisms. It is a tongue-in-cheek performance and one in which Orton’s witty dialogue is best showcased. Victoria Lamb’s design is superb. The set is meticulously accurate and detailed with working-class kitsch. It functionally facilitates the movement of corpse and cash, and expert blocking by Richard Cottrell ensures the actors’ movements are not restricted by the ever-present cadaver. The plot is complex and agile, and Cottrell’s stylish revival is a true homage. Social values may have shifted but the visual and verbal gags still work. It’s satire of the Catholic Church through the fiendish Fay — “Had euthanasia not been against my religion I would have practised it. Instead, I decided to murder her!” — is still biting, as are the social attitudes to death and the integrity of the police force. Orton’s irreverent characters act outside the barriers of social morality, where money replaces death as their main preoccupation. Who says it has dated? Thumbs up!
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All images: © Heidrun Löhr 2011
Darren Gilshenan. |
Robin Goldsworthy and Darren Gilshenan. |
William Zappa and Lee Jones. |
