THEATRE: WOYZECK

Woyzeck follows a long tradition for Belvoir St Downstairs of showcasing up-and-coming thespian talent and providing the chance to see more experimental or fringe work than its Upstairs main stage. Georg Büchner’s text (circa 1836) is heavy, following the psychological demise of the lowly soldier Franz Woyzeck as he is ruthlessly trampled by the ‘good men’ around him, and succumbs to the status of scientific experiment at the hands of the sadistic ‘Doctor’. The play unfolds as a philosophical parable regarding the relationship between man and nature. I am reminded of the ‘learning plays’ of Büchner’s successor Brecht, to which the ‘chalk circle’ drawn to enclose the musical prologue in Belvoir’s foyer is a less-than subtle nod. Despite the intellectual aerobics such plays imply, director Netta Yaschin strives to escape a ‘talking heads’ approach, producing a highly sensorial adaption. Dancers in the cast demonstrate the artistry of the human body and live musicians vacillate between jovial tunes and sinister noise in a powerful sound design from Tom Hogan and Alexandra Spence. The ensemble produces striking imagery that contends with the classic text. Words and individual characterisation occasionally lose out, but a strong and unsettling impression is left none-the-less.

Aug 5-29, Belvoir St Downstairs, 25 Belvoir St, Surry Hills, $24-32, 9699 3444, belvoir.com.au

BY MEGAN GARRETT-JONES