Floor Thirteen | The Blue Room | til July 13 | ★ ★ ★ ★
Floor Thirteen plays with the idea of the unreliable narrator in a way not seen before on stage. The play opens on a woman in business dress panicking in a stuck elevator. In an effort to distract herself from the situation she is in she starts talking to the elevator repair man.
As the play moves forward he becomes less a sympathetic listener and more a benign interrogator, questioning holes in her story and bringing out the truth of the evenings’ events. Phoebe has just won a big case, you see, and tonight was meant to be a celebration of her success as an emerging lawyer – but that’s not the whole truth.
These events are played out for us by performers who use physical movement, mime and a kind of interpretive dance to re enact the happenings of the evening. Writer Elise Wilson talks about this work being rooted in the tricks our memories play on us. As we remember difficult situations – often in ways that rationalise our behaviour – we give those memories strength through repetition.
This concept is communicated beautifully through the repetitive movements of performers Tamara Creasey, Courtney Henri, Christopher Moro and Jordan Valentini. It is this innovative use of movement and mime – combined with the theatre in the round staging – which makes this work so impactful. The performers worked with Marshall to communicate the feelings and thought processes of each character – including Phoebe.
Kylie Bywaters is excellent as Phoebe, an often unlikable protagonist. Eliciting sympathy from the audience, all while refusing to accept the enormity of her actions and while performing within a space no bigger than 2 square metres is impressive to watch.
The creative vision of Marshall Stay – who is credited with Set, Sound and AV design as well as directing – Floor Thirteen is a captivating addition to the Blue Room’s already stellar Winter Season.
Floor Thirteen is on at The Blue Room until Saturday 13th July. Tickets and more information available from blueroom.org.au
Rebecca Bowman
