Looking For Alibrandi
Written by Melina Marchetta.
Adapted by Vidya Rajan. Directed by Stephen Micolazzo. Set and costume design.
Kate Davis. Lighting designer. Katie Sfetkidis. Composer and sound designer. Daniel
Nixon. Cast: Chanella Macri Josie. Amanda McGregor Christina/Sera. Natalie
Gamsu Nonna/Margaret Throsby/Sister Bernadette. Brigid Gallacher Ivy/John
Barton. Riley Warner Jacob Coote. Chris Asimos Michael. Brink Productions.
Canberra Theatre Centre. October 3-4 2025. Bookings; www.canberratheatre.com.au or
62752700.
Reviewed by Peter Wilkins.
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| The cast of Brink Productions' Looking For Alibrandi |
All one can do is survive and be loved Josie Alibrandi tells the audience in the final scene of Vidya Rajan’s award-winning adaptation of Melina Marchetta’s classic novel Looking For Alibrandi. For those unfamiliar with the popular novel or film, Looking For Alibrandi is the story of three generations of the Alibrandi women and their navigation through life’s struggles and conflicts. In a deeply moving performance, Natalie Gamsu plays Nonna with a firmly held belief in tradition, yet harbouring the pain of disillusionment, shame and abuse. Amanda McGregor’s Christina is a young woman struggling to cope as a young mother of a seventeen year old schoolgirl, while seeking to find true identity and freedom. McGregor touchingly captures the guilt and the shame of a Catholic woman and single parent who gave birth out of wedlock. Josie, played with the rebellious spirit of a young woman in search of her dreams, in an animated and riveting performance by Chapella Macri, navigates her way through adolescence and confusion in search of understanding and meaning.
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| Chapella Macri as Josie. Natalie Gamsu as Nonna |
It is the conviction of affinity with character and circumstance that makes the performances by these three fine actresses so believable. Not only do they convincingly play the three Alibrandi women in Marchetta’s story but they also take on the supporting roles of Josie’s hyperactive friend Sera, Sister Bernadette at Josie’s school, the snobbish North Shore schoolgirl, Ivy, Josie’s friend, John, living with the emotional pain inflicted by a neglectful MP father and the voice of Margaret Throsby. Gamsu, McGregor and Macri are well supported by the two men, Josie’s estranged and contrite father Michael in an empathetic performance by Chris Asimos and Riley Warner as Josie’s working class larrikin boyfriend Jacob Coote. This is a cast with a deep grasp of the issues that an immigrant family faces in a rapidly changing world. Stephen Micolazzo directs with a deep respect for authenticity. The pace is orchestral in its movements from the opening image of Nonna in a spot dreaming of a past life to the family bond of preparing the tomato sauce in a large tub to Nonna’s revelation of abusive suffering to the awkward confusion of Josie’s sexual encounter. Micolazzo maintains a keen eye for detail and character and his cast delivers with a conviction that is touching and moving, at times hilarious, at times discomforting and at times heartwarming in its humanity.
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| Amanda McGregor as Christina. Natalie Gamsu as Nonna. Chapella Macr as Josie in Looking For Alibrandi |
Looking For Alibrandi is a profoundly personal account of the Italian immigrant experience, but it is a story for all people who have had to face struggles within the family and in the outside world and have had to find ways of surviving and with the support of family and loved ones. Brink Productions’ adaptation for the stage encapsulates Marchetta’s themes and characters in a performance that is as rich and flavoursome as a freshly cooked pasta sauce. This is no Leggo substitute. E la cosa reale. This outstanding production is in Canberra for only three performances. If you love the book or the novel or you know nothing about this heart-warming story don’t miss its brief stay. It’s a treat.
