Broken
On an isolated road in the Central Desert a stranger rescues a young woman from a near fatal car crash. It’s a moment of life and death. A bond is formed and worlds collide. Elsewhere, a woman waits for a man to return from the mines, her secrets to be slowly revealed. Each one, at various levels, is broken.
The multi-gifted Sarah Enright plays Mia – the waiting housewife – battling her demons from inside and out.
“It’s about three people – their isolation, the impact the expanse of the land has on them, their emotional state and their relationships,” explained Enright.
Written by Darwin based Mary Anne Butler, Broken has made its mark on a swathe of awards up and down the country, most notably winning the Victorian Premier’s Award for Literature. “Mary Anne’s amazing script is just so poetic and beautiful with all the emotions that it travels through,” said Enright. “It’s abstract – really like a spoken poem.”
Coming back to a text-based piece after so long away has been a major attraction for Enright: “It’s been a real joy to use words again and know the power that is in language.”
Set at night, in the quiet malevolence of the outback, the work draws the audience into a deeper kind of listening.
“Sometimes you can go to the theatre and feel bombarded. We are trying to slow down time a little so people feel comfortable in the dark and tune into the story with their ears.”
Enright – who is no stranger to Australian theatre, film and television – adds another creative string to her bow later this year, taking up a fine arts residency in Austria. (GW)
Aug 3–28, varied performance times. Darlinghurst Theatre Company, Eternity Playhouse, 39 Burton Street, Darlinghurst. $30-$45. Tickets & info: darlinghursttheatre.com or 02 8356 9987.
