By Leon Georgiou
LIVE REVIEW
MOUNT Gambier local and nationally acclaimed performer Sarah Brokensha, delivers a raw onstage performance, that will move anyone who has grieved the loss of a loved one, in The World is Looking for You.
The one-person show, directed by Daisy Brown, has Brokensha seamlessly switch between three women in three separate yet connected stories.
The production is a somewhat abstract and at times surreal exploration of the three women, along three separate threads of reality, that are all loosely connected in a web of loss and self exploration.
The play was based on the real story of a woman in Iceland who joined a search party for a missing tourist, before realising that the search party was actually looking for her.
Playwright Finegan Kruckemeyer drew inspiration from this quirky story and its twist on the notion of self identity, using it as a creative springboard to unpack one woman’s life.
The play is partly about the woman in Iceland, searching – quite literally – for herself.
It’s about Sarah Brokensha, the real Sarah Brokensha, and her struggle to find her sense of identity whilst grieving the loss of her father.
It’s also about a mentally broken, nondescript woman, washing dishes in a house: who is the metaphysical embodiment of the life left behind by Sarah’s father.
It’s deep and poetic and beautifully layered with metaphor, and even after the curtains close, you are left unpacking the many facets of this, at times confronting, at times tender, touching journey.
Brokensha’s performance is believable as she bares herself emotionally to the audience.
It’s also impressive, as she runs through the gamut of human emotions; from anger through depression, happiness and sadness, she is at times shy and timid, then forceful and defiant, but always carrying an underlying sense of vulnerability.
And whilst the three characters are clearly distinguished through Brokensha’s acting ability, they are further delineated by the artful composition of Mario Späte and haunting vocals of Paige Court.
The musical soundscape helps guide the audience through both the physical landscapes experienced by the characters along with their precarious mental states.
Wendy Todd staged the production, utilising a contemporary, minimalistic design that helps keep the focus on Brokensha.
The World is Looking for You was presented by Country Arts SA and Control Party in association with the Adelaide Festival Centre and Brink Productions, at the Sir Robert Helpmann Theatre from August 12 through 13.
