Review: Eden at The Gallery, Courtyard of Curiosities

Review by Lisa Lanzi

Kate Gaul of Sydney's much-lauded Siren Theatre Co has written, directed, and produced Eden, an original two-hander premiering at Adelaide Fringe this year. This multi-talented creative has been described as "…one of Sydney's most insightful, confident and versatile directors…" by arts writer Ben Neutz, and that assessment is certainly evident with the presentation of this theatrical gem.

Resonating with Siren's and Gaul's focus on telling or interpreting theatre works through a female-centred lens, Eden delivers enormous satisfaction as poetic, fast-flowing word-pictures reveal the minutiae of life in a small Tasmanian town alongside the trials of its inhabitants. The two protagonists, Kit and Dan, are teens bonded by a deepening friendship and mutual admiration yet beset by the emergence of desire and longing. Both young women seek something more than small-town boundaries and domestic strife for their future.

Karinne Kanaan and Lara Lightfoot are the actors who bring Gaul's lyrical text to life. The two manifest a precious, absorbing interlude with this rich and focused story within the small, intimate space of The Gallery venue. Both performers are spellbinding and utterly present in their characterisations.  As well as embodying Kit and Dan, these actors morph into various townies: crass and cruel youths, a sleazy teacher, their two mothers (each with complex stories of their own), the pizza shop worker, the school bus driver, and others. With subtle but expert changes in physicality and vocal delivery (vocal coach Rosalind Nugent is credited), these secondary characters blaze forth. Though it is the teen characters that we mostly connect with and then happily stay beside as a kind of resolution is approached.

Sited as a traverse, the performance space is very small, the set merely two long benches manipulated by Kanaan and Lightfoot to project a number of different locations. There is great intimacy between audience and actors, some lines delivered directly to an individual viewer with seasoned aplomb by the performers. Some scenes still bestow a wonderful sense of space when one or both actors stand upon the benches, gazing over our heads toward rural vistas or down the main street of town. Though I imagine the closeness of the traverse might be confronting for some, it is one of my favourite settings for intimate theatrical experiences, particularly when aided by exemplary craft from such outstanding performers.

A gentle, pleasing soundscape accompanies some scenes and abets transitions beside subtle lighting state shifts. An enduring, recurring image peppers the text: a snaking river as it carves through the landscape. Once again, this image and symbol is supported beautifully by the spare sound backing. The moods and dangers of this river, a tributary of the Derwent, reflect the tenor of the girls' lives and experiences, rendering it another character within the narrative - sometimes comforting, often mysterious, but ever-changing.

The prodigious talents of the two actors are supported by Kate Gaul's insightful, clear, almost painterly direction. The work never drags and language and images propel the action, much as does the movement and positioning of the performers. The audience gaze is tested as we take in the thoughtful arrangement of two bodies in the space, both at ground level and higher. This tactic immerses us in the story and physically places us within the orbit of these characters, whether they are lounging in the park to eat pizza, balancing on a fence, or riding a bus and dodging the crowded aisle and sway of the vehicle.

Gaul's writing throughout Eden is poetic, considered, and graceful—rhythmic, meticulously paced, image-rich, deep and descriptive without being overwrought, yet spare enough to leave room for audiences to embrace meaning while pondering their own interpretations. Kanaan's and Lightfoot's delivery leads us to the edge of an epic poem in play form, yet never alienates, only reels us deeper into their characters' inner worlds.

This work is elegantly minimal, invigorating, yet surprisingly complex in its creation of a world where two young souls search for connection, identity, and finally escape. Eden is intimate theatre at its finest with Kate Gaul’s beautiful writing shining through, and simply a pleasure to witness this Fringe.

Image Supplied