Here is a play that every activist, racist, historian, student, business man, and housewife – in fact, every citizen – should see, produced by a company which is continually raising the bar for student theatre. Fregmento Stokes, writer of the outstanding 2008 musical Melbourne Model: The Musical, has outdone himself with his latest piece 1938: An Opera, performed at Union House Theatre and Melbourne University.
The idea for 1938 came out of a summer subject called “On Country Learning”, in which Stokes met Yorta Yorta singer/songwriter Lou Bennet, who would go onto to mentor Stokes through the project. In the show, Stokes takes the audience back to 1938 and the 150th anniversary of European settlement on Australian shores, where the government has prepared a re-enactment of Captain Cook’s landing at Phillip Cove. 1938 also marks the first major public protest against the treatment of Indigenous Australians and the White Australia Policy, named “The Day of Mourning”, in which members of the Indigenous and non-Indigenous community marched through Sydney to Trades Hall.
Together with director Tom Gutteridge, Stokes creates an alternative history though a rehashing of the events of that day, utilizing aspects of traditional opera, Cantonese opera, 70s lounge and Greek chorus to create an enthralling “what might have been” environment.
1938 is laden with irreverent humour, wildly inappropriate commentary on life in the 1930s, and confronting yet amusing reflection on contemporary Australian culture and the reconciliation debate.
However, there is a moment where the play moves from the satirical to the darkly serious and extremely political, and this tangibly jolted the audience, who, it seemed, sometimes didn’t know whether to laugh or stare in horror. The most unsettling thing was the musical’s refusal to dismiss the atrocities occurring on stage as simply being artifacts of the past – even an invented one. Constant references to contemporary debate and culture were just enough to keep the knowledge that the issues being discussed and exposed are still of concern today in the forefront of the audience’s mind.
This is balanced, however, by the composition and musical direction, which is delightful, and truly out of this world. Ashlee Clapp – who learnt Cantonese from scratch in order to compose an authentic Cantonese opera piece – provides solid support for a talented cast of singers, across and hugely wide range of musical styles.
One cannot go past the female leads in this production. Jessie Lloyd plays a charmingly genuine Marge Tucker, which clashes brilliantly against the passionate and hugely dramatic Italian anarchist Lucia Bertazzon, played by Christiana Aloneftis. But it was Stephanie John as the obnoxious and unapologetically non-politically correct Cordelia Cramp that stole the show. Blessed with a fantastic, irreverent character who by far delivered the most cringe-worthy lines of the production, John delivered the role with flair, making even the most racist and insensitive material funny, yet poignant.
Opening night hiccups were few and easily smoothed over, and perhaps the only criticism I can level at the production is the clunky scene transitions, and occasional awkward and expositional descriptions in order to identify certain historical figures.
With that said, 1938 takes a vastly wide range of background and cultural influence to deliver a fantastically insightful, intelligent and very funny performance.
1938: An Opera runs until 13 October at The Open Stage, The University of Melbourne. Tickets are $25 full-price and $15 concession.
