Newtown’s New Theatre explores the concept of what it is to be a wife, told through a queer lens, over multiple periods, with the unifying thread being productions of Ibsen’s classic play of marital discord, A Doll’s House. Sound complicated? Well, it is! However, director Darrin Redgate does an excellent job interpreting this play, drawing the audience in and delivering a love letter to the theatre world.
The central character in 1950s London, Daisy, is at a crossroads. Her moral compass tells her to go one way and society the other. What she chooses to do next will have consequences for her, her husband, and four couples over the next ninety years. We meet intertwined characters, gay and straight, over generations, all invested in some way with the concept of ‘wife’, Ibsen’s rebellious Nora being the benchmark against which they judge themselves.
I must admit I had to quickly read up on the story of A Doll’s House (which I studied many years ago in University Drama). Still, you don’t need to know the source material to appreciate and enjoy Adamson’s sometimes dark humour. The writing is sharp and witty and delivered with great punctuation and timing by the outstanding ensemble cast – all of whom play multiple characters over the play’s two and a half hours.
Wife is a conceptual play with a very distinct point of view. Aibhlinn and Burley Stokes’ period-appropriate costumes were strongest in the 1950s. The journey through four time periods happens seamlessly with the help of David Marshall-Martin’s simple yet effective set, which contained lovely easter eggs throughout, such as the portraits of Thatcher and Queen Elizabeth II in Act One and the portrait of “King” William wearing the Imperial State Crown in the 2040s in Act 2.
Imogen Trevillian is delightfully naive when playing Daisy in the first half and plays opposite an outstanding Julia Vosnakis as the confident, self-assured Suzannah. The two women (in their various roles) anchor the show beautifully – especially as the themes of sexuality and the compromises that had to be made in both the 50s and the 80s are explored as time jumps forward in the narrative.
Henry Lopez Lopez as Eric and Cas is the show’s heart as he plays a young kid struggling with his sexuality in Act 1 and then as a self-assured, camp, frothy, out-and-proud gay actor in Act 2. Pete Walters’ brusque, homophobic barman in Act 1 reminded the audience of both the dangers of being gay and the oppression experienced by the gay community in Thatcher’s AIDS-era England. As Ivar at 50 in act two, he shows how someone can become a shadow of their former self when they regret the road not taken and the emotional pain that comes from realising what could have been if a different path was taken. In many ways, this character shows the audience the compromises and sacrifices that had to be made for being gay in a different, less tolerant time for us, as a community, to get to the tolerance and acceptance more broadly evident in today’s world. Alison Brooker rounds out the cast as character actress/embassy assistant and the long-suffering theatre hair stylist Marjorie. She is an excellent “straight man” to much of the dark comedy around her.
For this reviewer, the standout performance of the evening was Will Manton. Beginning as the aggressive, controlling, violent, hyper-masculine 1950s husband Robert, then as young Ivor who, in the face of the 1980s, gay plague and homophobia, refuses to conform. Finishing the second act as a confused yet amiable fiancé desperately trying to wake up in an era where he doesn’t know the rules, this young actor shows range, depth and an innate ability to connect with an audience. Wednesday night’s opening night audience universally loathed his first character, and his subsequent characters gained the audience’s respect and, finally, their sympathy. To make an audience feel such a range of emotions for one actor playing multiple characters in one night is a sign of a great actor, and I see great things ahead for Will Manton. Indeed, amongst the chatter in the foyer at intervals on opening night, I heard whispers of him being “the next Russell Crowe or Hugh Jackman”.
Wife has the potential to be confusing, but the precise direction and strong performances give it clarity and purpose and leave its audiences feeling a range of emotions. It is a hilarious play with a healthy dose of pathos.
Good theatre challenges its audience, and for days after Wednesday’s opening night, Wife had this reviewer reflecting on how far we’ve come, what we had to do to get here and poses the question – do we have to give up part of ourselves if we want to be with someone?
Wife is playing at the New Theatre Newtown through to 2 November.
Photos © Bob Seary
In his past lives, Damien was a drag queen and musical theatre actor. He made his stage debut as a fat cow in a school production of Joseph in 1984. He holds a BA with a major in drama from the University of Newcastle. He is completely obsessed with musical theatre – especially broadway divas. Since relocating to Sydney at the beginning of 2024 he attends every musical he can get to and lives with his partner and grumpy 12 year old poodle.