Member
In the tiny fifty-seater performance space above the World
Bar in Potts Point; master storyteller Ben Noble, Blood Moon theatre and Fairy
Lucid productions bring Member to life in this thrilling one man show.
I was privileged to experience this multi-layered
spellbinding yet spine-chilling tale on its opening night.
The play opens at the conclusion, gathering the threads and reasoning’s
behind the unhinged emotions of gang mentality. Member takes the audience on a
twisted journey into the minds and behaviours of a small minded community's reactions to homophobic
attacks on teenage boys at Manly Head in the late 1980’s.
Spoken from the emotional perspectives of at least fifteen
skilfully transformed characters.
A particularly memorable and outstanding scene
of a birth comes to mind, as Ben dynamically flipped from character to
character, using impeccably timed pauses adjusting his vocal timbre and body
language to create a harmonic and beautifully poetic rhythm. The simplicity of
the staging and lights emphasise the significance of the sobering piece.
However, odd moments of witticisms burst forth from many of the colourful
characters throughout, lifting and bringing a balance to the complex plot.
This is a play, about identity; social acceptance, stolen
innocence and the lack of support surrounding these assaults. Noble’s play
exposes a society that turns a blind eye to these events by normalising homophobic
grooming and amplifying aggression in Australian male stereotypes. Eventually
spiralling into a cyclic causality of history once again repeating itself, unearthing the seeds of memories deeply ingrained, but never truly forgotten.
Riveting and bursting with emotional turmoil, Member had a
strong impact and left me speechless and on the edge of my seat. I felt
as if I were on a runaway train, waiting for the inevitable crash.
Member will be playing as part of the Mardi Gras
celebrations up until the 4th March and is definitely one to
watch.
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