The Days Are as Grass
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The Days Are as Grass is the first non-musical work from multi award-winning writer Carol Hall (The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas). This Australian premiere at The Depot Theatre reveals a real working of the human spirit – surprising, unconventional, rye and very funny, at times poignant and very real. There are great tensions to be explored.
The production is a collection of short plays and two solos, bringing to the stage a beautiful rainbow of relationships and experiences that are grounded in the mature population. There are seven wonderful Australian actors, each taking on up to three roles, manifesting 14 distinctive, unusual characters. It’s an experienced cast with the youngest actor around 39 and the oldest in their 70’s.
There are relationships that have lasted more than 60 years, there’s a brother and sister who were very young when their parents divorced and now face a very challenging reuniting of the parents. In The Last Word, a woman is confined to a wheelchair, with no motor skills or speech but with her mind intact. We see her husband of many years sticking by her, it’s beautifully poignant and in no way moody or dark but a celebration of this couple, of the man’s loyalty. Another couple face a decision to do with the right to life, or to choose a dignified death – very much a current discourse in our society.
“We are all human, our jib is not cut perfectly, sometimes we succeed in things and sometimes we don’t, we just do our best,” explained Director Jane Edwina Seymour.
“[The Days Are as Grass is a] drama that crosses into comedy and pathos, it’s not all dark and shadowy, there’s some wonderful humour and rye, sophisticated adult sensibility running through it. It’s reaffirming and a celebration. It’s very immediate and very intimate, weaving some wonderful magic, with great wisdom. It could be dreadfully sad and maudlin but instead it’s dignified.” (MS)
Oct 19–29 (Wed-Sat 8pm, Sun 5pm). Depot Theatre, 142 Addison Road, Marrickville. $22-$32. Tickets & info: www.thedepottheatre.com
BY MEL SOMERVILLE
