Charlotte Varcoe
MOUNT Gambier Theatre Group’s latest performance is not for the faint hearted.
This weekend marks the final performance of the critically acclaimed play Dinner.
Originally written by Moira Buffini and directed by local Luke Pellen, the young cast took to the stage over two weekends, entertaining the masses.
With such a young cast on hand, viewers had very little idea of the production they were about to walk into.
The story revolves around a young author Lara who found his passion in philosophy.
To celebrate the success of his book Beyond Belief his wife Paige hosts a very intricate dinner with specific guests, each providing their own purpose to the night.
Throughout the night, the philosophy of a number of topics come to light in amusing and entertaining ways while using props to discuss death, affairs and general morals.
Audience members were entertained by the youthful actors who projected their passion for the dark comedy while remaining quick witted and quirky.
Bringing their own flare to the already popular characters in the play, the cast not only made difficult topics such as truth and self worth comedic and entertaining, they also had the audience discussing and critically analysing their own morals which was evident by the discussions during the interval.
Not only would the cast craft these important topics through their wonderful acting, they also interacted on stage in a way which was entertaining and delightful.
Audience members would easily lose themselves in the acting of the cast, forgetting many worked or attended the local schools.
It was not only the cast translating Moira’s play onto the small stage, the props throughout the performance was well thought out with the main course – lobsters – representing the idea of being in control of death, a theme which translated well during the shocking final moments while also testing the boundaries of relationships and control.
A further theme of the use language could have on one’s self worth and how impactful it could be when used in different ways.
Expressed through the use of coarse language with each character, the cast explores how different words are said in different ways, leading to opening the discussion for morals once again.
Director Luke Pellen also integrated his own style to the play by using music from Carnival of Animals, accurately setting the tone for each dinner course.
Overall, the immediate success of almost 60 audience members on opening night shows how the Mount Gambier Theatre Group continues to produce wonderful performances.
