THE FEMALE OF THE SPECIES is another one of Australian playwright Joanna Murry-Smith’s nearly brilliant dialectical counterpoint plays about a writer running out of creative juices. Poor Margot Mason, author of cult book “The Cerebral Vagina”, can’t get started on her next book. She’s only written 232 words and her publisher is hounding her for the manuscript. As she stares at the laptop waiting for inspiration, Molly enters. She is a young woman who comes to kill Margot because ‘The Cerebral Vagina’ ruined her life. Her mother was a devotee of the book’s message and consequently abandoned Molly and then committed suicide. Margot doesn’t see Molly enter and continues to stare at the laptop. She doesn’t see, because Molly isn’t there. Molly is only in Margot’s head.
This is the similar theme of Joanna ‘s “Switzerland”, most recently performed at the Ensemble Theatre. In “Switzerland,” the woman writer is also at the end of her career, searching for something useful to say. She, too, imagines someone entering her workspace. The endings of both plays are also the similar. It would be a spoiler to reveal what happens to the writers.
This production is directed by Erica Lovell. She has chosen an excellent cast. Lucy Miller is the highly strung playwright. Juda Fuda is the revengeful Molly. Liz Campbell plays Margot’s housewife daughter and Doron Chester is her businessman husband. Joe Kalou is the wannabe writer taxi driver. Mark Lee is Margot’s publisher who appears near the end of the play.
Early on Molly chains Margot to her desk….this is Margot chaining herself to her desk because she can’t stop trying to write something worthwhile. And, she now doubts the value of what she wrote decades ago. This doubt brings forth the next four characters. Entering one by one, Margot imagines how each of them has been affected by her books. Margot only unchains herself after the burden of writing is passed on to one of the young characters, the taxi driver. Finally Margot is free.
There’s lots of terrific counterpoint repartee. Most of it is shouted. The Old Ftiz is a tiny theatre. Why do all the characters need to shout? It is a black-comedy but some tonalism would be welcome. We’d get so much more out of THE FEMALE OF THE SPECIES if the dialogue was spoken naturalistically.
THE FEMALE OF THE SPECIES produced by Rogue Projects (rogueprojects.com.au) is playing the Old Fitz theatre until November 23 2024.
Production photography by Noni Carroll
http://www.oldfitztheatre.com.au
