Written by David
Williamson
Directed by Denis
Moore
The Q, Queanbeyan - 19
November to 23 November, 2013
Reviewed by Len
Power
19 November 2013
With
the title of this play you feel pretty sure you know what you’re going to see –
a family up in arms when their father marries a younger woman. However, David Williamson’s, ‘When Dad Married
Fury’, delivers a lot more than just a pleasant and amusing evening at the
theatre.
David
Williamson again digs below the surface of these very Australian characters
showing aspects of ourselves that we’d rather keep hidden. Jealousy, pettiness and greed all surface in these
characters as they react to a situation they didn’t see coming. They judge their new stepmother harshly before
they’ve met her and are in for quite a surprise when they get to know her. Williamson has quite a bit of fun pointing up
cultural differences between Australians and Americans here. You can predict that Fury is going to have
more substance than the family expect, but she’s not perfect either.
The
cast of seven all give very strong, believable performances. Annie Last as Fury displays the strengths and
weaknesses of her character particularly well.
David James as the son, Ian, brings out every nuance of an affable
Australian bloke who’s really masking a whole range of insecurities.
Director,
Denis Moore, who also plays Dad, has produced a well-paced production with good,
in-depth characterizations from his entire cast. It’s nicely staged on a simple but effective set
by Shaun Gurton and the costumes by Adrienne Chisholm have been well executed.
This
is a funny play that makes us think about the judgements we make and the
consequences of our actions on others. David
Williamson continues to be the master when it comes to showing ourselves as we
really are.
