State Theatre Company South Australia
Dunstan Playhouse
From now through to 15th October
By James Murphy
Larry Kramer’s semi-autobiographical dramatization of the first three years of the AIDS outbreak within New York’s LGBTIQ+ community between 1981 and 1984 premiered Off-Broadway in 1985. There was no historical revisionism, no opportunity for hindsight: it was a work of the utmost contemporaneity and urgency, a vehicle for spreading the word after all other means had been exhausted. Almost 40 years on from the work’s debut, as a new pandemic continues to rage on, the searing sociological critique of humanity’s various responses to the fear of an unknown contagion and the prejudice that so often emerges as a symptom of this panic is urgent once more.
When The Normal Heart debuted Off-Broadway, and during the 2011 revival, the sets were barren; facts regarding the nascent outbreak were scrawled on the walls. For STCSA’s production, the Dunstan Playhouse stage is transformed into an inner-city clinic by Set & Costume Designer Jeremy Allen. Scene changes seamlessly occur while cellist Clara Gillam-Grant and pianist/actor, Helpmann Award winner Michael Griffiths, play Hilary Kleinig’s compositions; there’s a recurrent New Order ‘Bizarre Love Triangle’ motif. As with the 2011 production, the nine-member cast mostly remains on stage, even when not featured, watching on in the shadows.
The play follows Jewish-American writer and activist Ned Weeks (Mitchell Butel), based on Kramer, as he is informed of the mysterious contagion by polio survivor and wheelchair user, Dr Emma Brookner (Emma Jones) and then is inspired into passionate action after seeing parallels between the complacency and wilful blindness regarding this new existential threat and the Holocaust. Ned, possessing an avoidant attachment style after being traumatised by forced psychoanalysis of his sexuality, falls in love with New York Times journalist Felix (Ainsley Melham), and assembles a team of activists to raise awareness: the closeted Bruce (Matt Hyde), the flamboyant Southerner Tommy (Anthony Nicola) and sexual liberationist Mickey Marcus (Evan Lever). Each activist embodies a different philosophical perspective on how to respond to the crisis; their arguments aren’t too dissimilar to COVID-19 Facebook feuds regarding the utility of masks and vaccines. Michael Griffiths and AJ Pate play a couple of supporting roles each; Griffiths is particularly good as pragmatic Mayoral advisor Hiram Keebler. Mark Saturno is fantastic as Ned’s homophobic brother Ben.
Given the context of the play’s creation, it is of little surprise that the on-stage dialogue features a disproportionate quantity of shouting; it is a polemic, a tirade, a call to action. Under the direction of Dean Bryant and Connor Reidy, though, the rage always possesses a purpose, the characters always display an intent. It is a work that is heavy on the impassioned monologues but they were never tiresome; cheers awaited each member of the cast when they concluded. Evan Lever and Matt Hyde undergo compelling character arcs that culminate in gut wrenching crescendos. When opportunities exist for softness and humour, these are taken with Butel, Melham, Jones and Nicola all displaying precision comedic timing, which serves as an essential counterbalance to the hefty emotional weight of much of the action. The chemistry between Butel and Melham is palpable.
It shouldn’t have taken 40 years and the juxtaposition between the public health response to COVID-19 and AIDS for the full scale of the injustice and prejudice experienced by the LGBTIQ+ community to be adequately conveyed. The Normal Heart, which features an admirably diverse cast, will induce empathy and understanding in even the most hardened cardiovascular muscle.
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