Written and performed
by Jonathan Biggins
Directed by Aarne Neeme
Produced by Soft
Tread
The Playhouse,
Canberra Theatre Centre to 31 March
Reviewed by Len Power
26 March 2019
Anyone who attends the annual productions of ‘The Wharf
Revue’ will be familiar with Jonathan Biggins’ hilarious performances as Paul
Keating. Those were only short monologues
and the big question with ‘The Gospel According To Paul’ is whether Biggins can
pull off playing Keating in a one-man show for the whole evening. The answer is a resounding ‘yes’!
Hollywood producer, Samuel Goldwyn, was reputed to have
said, ‘No-one should write their autobiography until they are dead’. Jonathan Biggins’ play – a trawl through
Keating’s early life and political career - becomes autobiography with Biggins’
startlingly clever impression of the man himself in a constantly sustained
marathon 90 minute non-stop performance.
Nicely designed by Mark Thompson, the living room set is filled
with the art, photographs and tasteful objects that we like to imagine the educated
and worldly Paul Keating would surround himself with. We find Keating in a reflective mood but
there’s an edge to his personality that warns us to be ready for anything.
His story is a fascinating one, starting with his formative
years in Bankstown with his family and his early career as a music group
manager. When he moved into politics, he
became part of an era of great change which many of us remember very well. He reminds us of the many personalities who
were part of that change with his devastating assessments of these people’s
strengths and weaknesses and his relations with them. His opinions on each of the Prime Ministers
with whom he was associated and on those who came after him are particularly
amusing. Keating’s political life is the
focus in this play, not his personal life.
Nicely directed by Aarne Neeme, the one man show is carefully
paced and staged with some vaudeville-like musical moments that work very well. Although played for 90 minutes without a
break, it was constantly entertaining.
Jonathan Biggins has triumphed in both writing and
performance with this play. It’s funny, informative
and, for many of us, highly nostalgic. We
are left with a picture of Keating with all the contradictions and complexities
that he displayed during his political life and he remains a fascinating and
enigmatic character. I wonder what the
real Paul Keating would make of it?
Photos by Brett Boardman
Len Power’s reviews
are also broadcast on the Artsound FM 92.7 ‘In the Foyer’ program on Mondays
and Wednesdays at 3.30pm.
