Bankstown Theatre Company: They're Playing Our Song - Review by Daniel Conway

Full disclosure, I had never heard of this show before. I walked into the Bryan Brown Theatre totally blind and with no expectations. When it comes to theatre, going in blind rarely elicits an average response — I either find something I wish to forget, or I find a gem that will stay with me. They’re Playing Our Song is thankfully the latter, being a musical with one of the smartest and best-written books I have ever seen. The dialogue is snappy and entertaining, controlled by the leading man and woman who very rarely leave the stage. This is impressive enough without the context that they had a very short rehearsal period to pull it all off. I think it is fair to say that everyone at Bankstown Theatre Company should be very proud of this production.

Directed by Diane Wilson, They’re Playing Our Song is a masterclass in effective theatre-making. Wilson has clearly worked hard to help her leads develop an ease and rapport on stage that translates beautifully for the audience. The staging was effective and, refreshingly, did not rely on any technology to make it work. This is a credit to Christopher Hamilton’s set design and Sean Clark’s lighting, which created a sense of fullness on the stage despite only two performers being present — adding to the grounded nature of the scenes.

This show was described by cast members I spoke to as being a play with music, which, while true, did not mean the musical elements disappointed at all. Musical Director Greg Crease did a fabulous job ensuring the cast sounded brilliant, and the choreography by Cathy O’Rourke added some truly delightful and joyous elements. At points, I found the musical interludes distracting from the play at hand — this is not a reflection of the work of BTC, but rather a reflection of how good the scenes and the acting were, coupled with issues in the musical itself. That being said, some of my favourite moments came from O’Rourke and Wilson letting the ensemble shine in some truly absurdist scenes. While I firmly believe this show would be just as amazing without the numbers, yes — but would that result in me not seeing the male ensemble dancing while limping and wearing hospital gowns? I’m not sure the trade would be worth it.

The stars of the show, Max Fernandez and Isabella Rodrigues, are brilliant as Vernon and Sonia. I have never been so impressed by two performers. They injected so much life into the characters and helped convey them as rounded, flawed and intensely likeable. Fernandez projected a maturity well beyond his years and fully disappeared into the character. His performance was full of brilliant one-liners, which meant he had the audience eating out of the palm of his hand. Extra kudos should also be given to Fernandez for not breaking character when large swathes of the audience, presumably friends and family, decided to turn something that wasn’t a punchline into one. Rodrigues is equally impressive. The character is chaotic, expressive, flighty and has a sense of whimsy that needs to be conveyed without becoming cloying. Instead, Rodrigues was so endearing and quick that Sonia was a joy to see on stage. A good performance is when someone is able to really tap into the material; a great performance is when performers can do that and lift others. Fernandez and Rodrigues gave outstanding performances that speak to their skill and craft as performers, and make me want to see more of them.

I really enjoyed this show — if the tone of my language was not clear. I didn’t love everything; most of my complaints lie with the show itself and not with anything done on stage, because what was produced in a short rehearsal period was nothing less than magic.

Photos courtesy of Grant Leslie Photography