This Much is True
Image: Septimus Caton.
Photo: John Marmaras
This Much Is True is a beautiful ode to the ratbags of society. It’s set around the bar at the fictitious pub The Rising Sun which is meant to be the 150 year old hotel, The Old Fitz in Woolloomooloo.
“Never before has a play about The Old Fitz been done at The Old Fitz. There’s something special about that and quite an odd experience to be in the pub, describing the pub, to the people in the pub. It’s definitely a comedy but it also will bring a tear to your eye,” said Septimus Caton, who plays Lewis.
Lewis is the alter ego of Louis Nowra, the playwright, who has an obsession with telling the stories of the kinds of people whose eyes you would avoid in the street. This is a beautiful homage to the backbone of these working class societies; a tale of the underdog.
“Our aim is to make you feel a part of this group. There’s a beautiful love and respect between these characters, mad as they are. There is poetry in the language, something classical and romantic about it, reminiscent of Banjo Patterson; there’s Australiana, the sound of cockatoos but at the same time it’s a beautiful ode to the inner-city world,” explained Caton.
The question is, how much is true? The play is based on the stories and characters that Nowra heard and his experience of what being a local means, which he still is to this day, he can be seen drinking there with his chihuahua.
This is the final instalment of a trilogy, but the play stands on it’s own, so if you haven’t seen the other two, Summer of the Aliens and Cosi, that’s ok.
Jul 12-Aug 12. Old Fitz Theatre, 129 Dowling Street (Cnr Cathedral Street), Woolloomooloo. $30-$42. Tickets & Info: www.redlineproductions.com.au
By Mel Somerville.
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