Review: Commentary at the Dunstan Playhouse

Review by Lisa Lanzi

It is both a gift and a daunting challenge when an opportunity to bring new work to the mainstage presents itself.  Auspiciously for State Theatre of South Australia, the product this time – Commentary - is an excellent one on all counts.  

A contemporary morality tale of sorts (sans proselytising), and blessed with playwright Ash Flanders’ sharply observed, witty text and sparkling dialogue, this production is outstanding.  There are no one-sided archetypes represented here, and no ‘clean’, hackneyed through lines.  As the story unfolds with subtle but surprising twists, each character is fleshed out to some extent and the stakes gather momentum.

The narrative centres on Nick (a scintillating Gyton Grantley), an arrogant-but-vulnerable ‘survivor’, surreptitiously grifting on others’ talents to rise (or ‘pivot’), phoenix-like, while perpetually dwelling within his insecurities.  There is no perfect sense of right and wrong posed here and pleasingly, no overly neat endings.  At times an audience will empathise with Nick whereas elsewhere, you may want to throw things at him as the self-pity ramps up and the booze is downed.  There may also be a touch of joy sparked at certain comeuppances, but no spoilers from me!

A formerly disgraced ‘one hit wonder’ filmmaker, now lecturer, Nick is circled by forthright female characters pursuing their own careers and futures.  All these folk are balancing the public and private aspects of their lives while secrets slowly reveal during the ninety-minute production, some of which have the potential to make one squirm with unease.

Commentary presents an array of themes and subjects in thought provoking ways: controversy, truth, power, ethics and cancel-culture, art-making, professionalism, success or failure, friendship, and more.  The story convolutes as the dialogue continuously unpacks, sometimes fiercely, facets of the truth and twists and turns of individuals’ perceptions, denials, or obfuscations.

The faultless work of the female cast, Shardae Santos, Anna Steen, and Kate Cheel see them embodying two characters each.  Steen is Nick’s accomplished wife Mish then transforms completely into Anna, the quick-witted, intelligent journalist.  Cheel is a total comedic delight as Saskia, Nick’s former muse, only seen upstage through a window wall and ‘on camera’.  Cheel then appears downstage as Clea, a former student of Nick’s who has invited him to take part in a film festival panel to do with his ‘doomed’ but awarded film, ironically titled Low.  As Nick’s student, and current lover Gen, Santos projects the grounded presence of a twenty-something assured of their feminist and sexual power and place in the world.  Contrastingly, Santos also portrays the less assured Frankie with an entirely different physicality and a very different story.

Director Petra Kalive describes Commentary as “a work about who controls the conversation and who has the loudest voice…”.  It is undoubtedly Kalive’s intelligent directing and incisive choices that make this play so successful.  In lesser hands it could lean into the realms of comedy and melodrama but Commentary has been crafted into a riveting piece of contemporary, relevant theatre that will definitely resonate after the lights dim.

Alongside the human creativity on show, technology plays a significant yet seamless role in this play.  At the beginning, and interspersed throughout, Nick’s voice-over narration is a device that conveys his biased view of proceedings, and later, displays his talent for seizing opportunities.  A palpable sense of social media and podcast phenomena as communication mediums, or perhaps obsessions for some, hovers over the action while the humble video call is elevated to scenery - an elegant way of magnifying certain conversations, literally.  Each time Nick communicates with Saskia (who has found fame in the US) previously unobtrusive screens each side of the stage animate with very close up live images, plunging us deep into the characters’ bargaining and manipulation tactics.  These moments are funny and discomforting all at once.

To meld all this live and filmed action, a veritable village of creatives have contributed their expertise.  Set & Costume Designer Matilda Woodroofe has delivered an elegantly simple yet functional set that gives just enough detail and costuming is on point.  Subtle but place-making effects have been designed by Composer / Sound & Video Designer Dan Thorpe and Nic Mollison has designed the lighting and acted as projection consultant.  Assistant Director Valerie Berry and content creator Matt Byrne complete the team bringing Ash Flanders’ work to life.

This is definitely a show to experience during this first full year of Petra Kalive’s tenure as Artistic Director.  I look forward to more works of this calibre and celebrate female leadership of a State Company.

Image Credit: Matt Byrne