Mamet's likeable play heads south

The Hoy Polloy Theatre Company dares to present the plays others won't...

Independent theatre is often enough to send people running for the hills. For some, it smells of unpaid work, lack lustre performances and plays that are very much hit or miss.

Those who know the real joy of independent theatre know that it can be incredibly enriching and often provides a better night in the theatre than some of the country's mainstream companies.

Hoy Polloy is an independent Melbourne theatre company dedicated to producing contemporary theatre that will resonate, challenge and entertain audiences. While committed to producing plays that the heavily-funded mainstream companies often ignore, the company also aims to produce quality new works from Australian playwrights which engender a community spirit.

The company is presenting the Victorian premiere of David Mamet’s play Boston Marriage, directed by Wayne Pearn, at the Mechanics Institute Performing Arts Centre, Brunswick from September 21.

Set against the backdrop of the glorious gilded age, the play focuses on a ‘Boston marriage’ – a relationship between two women, in this case Anna and Claire, that involves both physical and emotional intimacy.

The play gained acclaim in Sydney recently through a season at the Darlinghurst Theatre.

An incisive and witty satire, Boston Marriage highlights both repressed desire and class hostility (as witnessed first-hand by the maid Catherine) while it debunks Victorian pretensions, gender restrictions and hypocrisies. Mixed with humour and nuance, the play aligns with a thoroughly Wildean world as it explores the negotiations, conflicts, compromises and reconciliations that arise – with hilarious outcomes.

Mamet is probably most recognised for his testosterone-charged male characters in such classics as Glengarry Glen Ross and American Buffalo and a number of critics have posed the question, “Why doesn’t David Mamet write challenging roles for women?” The answer to that is: he has (The Cryptogram, Speed-the-Plow and Oleanna); and he will continue to do so.

What attracted Hoy Polloy to produce Boston Marriage is the fact that Mamet’s play has three terrific roles for women – and there isn’t a male character in it.

Director Wayne Pearn explains: “Mamet’s clever modernist drawing-room comedy has given Hoy Polloy opportunities to explore a Victorian-era production mode – which we’re relishing.”

He added: “Boston Marriage is an interesting change of pace for Hoy Polloy, as we don’t want to be pigeonholed as a company that is locked into a particular theatrical genre."

The cast features an experienced and industrious ensemble: Helen Hopkins, Corinne Davies and Eleanor Wilson, all of whom are working beautifully together.

Helen Hopkins has performed with the Melbourne Theatre Company, La Mama, Australian Shakespeare Company, the Melbourne and Dublin Fringe Festivals. She most recently played Tybalt in the Essential Theatre Company’s tour of Romeo And Juliet. Corinne Davies appeared in the Geoffrey Wright film Macbeth and featured in projects with Echelon Productions (Stars InYour Eyes and The People In Your Pocket). She was last seen in Hoy Polloy’s Australian première of Conor McPherson’s Shining City earlier this year.

Eleanor Wilson has extensive training at The Actor’s Playhouse and The Film Space, experience in television, short and feature films and theatre including The Grapes Of Wrath, Playing You and Nobody Hates The Beatles.

Boston Marriage opens at the Mechanics Institute Performing Arts Centre, Brunswick from September 21. Bookings: (03) 9016 3873.

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