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Lucy Maunder and Eddie Perfect |
Eddie Perfect and Lucy Maunder |
POSTED: 06 SEPTEMBER 2011 Bertolt Brecht & Kurt Weill’s The Threepenny Opera — Text by Raimondo Cortese | Lyrics by Jeremy Sams Sydney Theatre Company & Malthouse Melbourne & Victoria Opera | Sydney Theatre, Walsh Bay, Sydney | Until 24 September The Threepenny Opera tells the tale of the gangster Macheath and his downfall at the hands of Mr Peachum, the beggar king. Written by Bertolt Brecht, with music by Kurt Weill and based on The Beggar’s Opera by John Gay, Raimondo Cortese’s adaptation transports the original obscenities from Victorian London to the seedy side of suburban Sydney. Set inside a boxing ring, several portable stages rotate to form various decaying locations. Manually wheeled in, they evoke the importance and value of physical labour and emphasise the dwarfing of humans by the monstrous monolithics they portray.
Paul Capsis as Jenny narrates the story in drag, and has an immediate affiliation with the audience. The Ballad of Mack the Knife — which I am still singing — is the theme song of the opera and is soulfully rendered by Capsis in a yellow ballgown. He is excellent in this role and also in his biting portrayal of the Archbishop. The play opens in a beggar shop owned by Peachum, who controls all the vagrants in Sydney. His shop outfits this underclass and provides them with a specified location in which to beg. Amanda Muggleton as the self-interested Mrs Peachum is gruesome and very, very funny. She and Grant Smith as her boo-hiss villainous and hypocritical husband make for a dastardly double act. Polly, the Peachum’s daughter, is played by Lucy Maunder, recently seen in Dr Zhivago. Her voice is perfect for the young, sweet and naïve Polly, but not as suited to the second-act Polly, who has experienced the world of crime and brutality. As Macheath, the morally ambiguous hero, Eddie Perfect is brilliant! He is larger than life and totally compelling, a sadistic villain and murderer to boot! He oozes charisma, sex appeal and physical power, and ultimately achieves celebrity status. But, he really is a monstrous character — “a shark with bloody fins and hidden teeth”. The energy between Capsis and Perfect provide some of the best-paced and memorable scenes. Torn between two women, the virginal Polly Peachum and the suitably sordid Lucy Brown (Dimity Shepherd), daughter of the chief of police, Tiger Brown (Jolyon James), Mac ends up incarcerated and condemned to die. But a last minute reprieve ensures that the status quo is maintained in society’s underbelly, and Mac’s legend lives on. Epic Theatre is upheld with the obligatory use of placards conveying themes and messages, which to be honest now appear a little tired. Surely someone should update this alienation technique into the technological age! Conductor Richard Gill renders a straight version of Weill’s score and again, I am of the opinion that this too could have been “jazzed up”. There are also conflicting vocal styles, which range from operatic singers to cabaret performers. That may bother some, but I found it gave an edgy authenticity, fuelled by burlesque vitality. The costumes (Anna Cordingley) are garish and camp, matching perfectly the caricatures they portray. They are lavish and superbly colour coordinated. This is spectacular and wonderful theatre. It is perhaps far from a Marxist critique on the salacious society that underlies western capitalism — the intended purpose of Brecht’s drama — but Michael Kantor’s direction does retain the essence of satire, particularly in its emphasis on the glamour and glorification of economic criminals. All this is sumptuously served up in a stylish and superb production which is a must-see night at the theatre! Thumbs Up!
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All images: © Lisa Tomasetti 2011
Paul Capsis
Eddie Perfect
Angela Scundi and Eddie Perfect |
Lucy Maunder |
Grant Smith and Amanda Muggleton |
