“Minefields and Miniskirts” Producer: Noosa Arts Theatre Venue: Noosa Arts Theatre Writer: Terence O’Connell Director: Jenni McCaul Date: March 2014 “Honest, real and truly moving” Sometimes - to create true power in theatre - all you have to do is let the words do the work. Noosa’s production of Minefields and Miniskirts is a perfect example of this. This was verbatim theatre at its best. The actual words and experiences of Australian women involved in the Vietnam War. A very strong and disciplined hand grabbed the reins of this production and kept this honest and real. A very good ensemble was restrained from taking the horrific realities of their subject matter (and going completely over the top with their performances) and instead they pared the “acting” down and kept it real. Never for a moment did you think you were in a theatre watching real actors doing real acting - instead you engaged and absorbed by the real words of real people! This sounds easy - but believe me, this is an exceptionally difficult thing to achieve. The music (classic protest songs from the 60s) was great and provided much needed safety valves to help the audience reset from the natural barrage of realities. The set was functional and the continual projected images added - rather than distracted - to the overall theatrical experience. The cast was a great example of ensemble theatre. They were all perfect for their roles and therefore I will not single any of them out. I will, however, talk about the director. This was Jenni McCaul’s announcement that she has made that quantum leap from a competent director to a original director. She claimed the production loud and proud with her own original stamp. By that I mean people will not even realise that they not saying “Did you see Minefields and Miniskirts?” but they are in fact saying “Did you see Jenni’s Minefields and Miniskirts? Somehow she even managed to find light and shade in this maelstrom of the human predicament. Excellent work. So. It’s on for another week. Go and see it. Watch and listen without prejudice. Humanity is a truly cathartic thing. Simon Denver
Posted on: Sun, 16 Mar 2014 04:25:34 +0000
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