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| Chris Baldock (Angus) - Callum Doherty (Miles) - Richard Manning (Morgan) in "The Drawer Boy" |
Written by Michael Healey – Directed by Zac Bridgeman
Stage Managed by: Rhiley Winnett – Set Design and
projections by Chris Baldock.
Lighting design by Rhiley Winnett & Zac Bridgman
Sound design by Rhiley Winnett, Zac Bridgman and Chris
Baldock.
Performed by Chris Baldock, Callum Doherty, Richard Manning.
Belco Arts Centre, August 21 – 30th, 2025.
Performance on August 26th reviewed by BILL
STEPHENS
Despite the conscientious direction of Zac Bridgman, there are aspects of this production that don’t always reflect this reputation, although the play itself provides a welcome opportunity to experience an early work by Canadian actor and playwright, Michael Healey, which has achieved significant success in Canada, and which offers challenging roles for three actors.
The Draw Boy was inspired by a previous project, in which a group of actors in Ontario, Canada, interviewed farmers and their families to produce a theatrical work.
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| Richard Manning (Morgan) - Chris Baldock (Angus) in "The Drawer Boy" |
Expanding this idea, Healy, focussed his play on just two farmers, Morgan and his brain- damaged friend Angus, whose lives are upturned when an enthusiastic young actor, Miles, visits the pair with the request that he stay with them for a period to learn about life on a farm, as research for a play he is planning.
In the process Miles learns that pair’s long friendship has been maintained by a fiction invented by Morgan and exposed though his persistent enquiries.
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| Chris Baldock as Angus in "The Drawer Boy" |
Playing Angus, suffering confusion and memory loss as a result of a car accident, Chris Baldock gives a masterly, meticulously observed depiction of the plight of someone struggling with a damaged brain that can cope with complex mathematical problems, even count stars, but can’t retain the most recent information or memories.
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| Callum Doherty as Miles in "The Drawer Boy" |
Callum Doherty offers an interesting, idiosyncratic performance which portrays the impulsive young actor, Miles, as someone who, after insinuating himself into his hosts lives, sprawls on the kitchen table from which they eat their meals, loiters to listen-in on their private conversations, but erudite enough to sense the secret he would ultimately reveal to upend their lifelong friendship. The impact of Doherty’s portrayal however is lessened by the broadness of his Canadian accent combined with a tendency to speak his lines too quickly, making it often difficult to decipher what he is saying.
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| Richard Manning as Morgan in "The Drawer Boy" |
Richard Manning as the taciturn, Morgan, the Drawer Boy who gave up a promising architectural career to care for a farm and the needs of his struggling friend, is totally believable in a performance devoid of actorly flourishes and fascinating in its authenticity, that anchors the production.
Budget restrictions, not so obvious in previous Mockingbird Theatre productions, but particularly noticeable in the detailing of Chris Baldock’s set design, were overcome to some extent by clever design solutions by Bridgman, Baldock and Rhiley Winnett.
The sounds of farm animals and weather, augmented with evocative music selections embedded in the sound design effectively conjured up a farmyard ambience, although the projected farmyard buildings, which undulated whenever the actors moved past them, were distracting.
Photos by Zac Bridgman
This review also appears in AUSTRALIAN ARTS REVIEW. www.artsreview.com.au
