The WA Youth Theatre Company rarely put a foot wrong, often delivering some of the most emotive, creative and poignant theatrical experiences of the year.
Their premiere production of Grace Chow’s The Comprehensive A-Z of Missing Persons Australia is a work that challenges us to consider how we think about stories of missing people, and the factors that motivate so many people to step away form their lives.
As Chow explained when she spoke to OUTinPerth, so often missing people are viewed through the lens of criminality, and the rise of cold case podcasts has reinforced this perspective. In reality missing people are more likely to have experienced mental health challenges.
In this production we meet Em Wells, a young radio host who is coping with the challenges of a loved one who has gone missing. She has made friends with a Tasmanian Tiger. It turns out Tasmanian Tigers are amongst the long term missing, and Em’s new imaginary friend Tassie is pushing her to go missing too.
While the imaginary friend idea is a great technique for bringing some levity to a serious topic, the outstanding and powerful part of this work is how it highlights the sheer number of people who are among the long term missing in Australia.
Through out the work a chorus of performers call out the names of each missing person. This quick succession of fleeting names really demonstrates the gravity of the challenge. It really hits home when the chant hits a common name, Peter Hodgins, Peter Roach, Peter Baggenstos, Peter Henrich, Peter Millett, Peter Rumbel, Peter Jeacle… and on it goes.
With tighter and tighter budgets we’re becoming accustomed to smaller and smaller casts in theatrical productions, and at first the large cast of this work feels overwhelming, but the performances are all faultless.
The barren surroundings of the Liberty Theatre are perfect for this presentation, it’s a stripped back space, and we’re stripping back this topic to it’s bare bones too. On opening night there was a lot of noise bleed from the world outside, but it only addled to atmosphere of the work, like some additional unwanted voices in your head.
The Compendium of A-Z of Missing Persons Australia poses some significant questions, like are the police the right body to look after finding missing people? Most importantly it asks what we should be doing as a society to stop people getting to the point where they disappear and take drastic actions.
See the show at the Liberty Theatre in Perth City until 30th November.
