Director Patrick Kennedy (Sophia=(Wisdom) Part 3: The Cliffs) brings his signature surrealist style to this punk retelling of the 1889 Cleveland Street Scandal from British playwright James Fritz at the New Theatre.
The play reimagines the scandal – in which a secret gay brothel, frequented by a number of gentlemen and staffed by post boys, was discovered in 19th-century London – as a collage of scenes between aristocrats, arrested post boy Charlie and his mother Emily, and even glimpses into Queen Victoria’s conversations with God.
This production is stuffed with visual delights – a looming, cartoonish figure of Queen Vic keeps a watchful eye over the play’s events as four video screens keep track of place and time, and a warped Union Jack is slung in the back corner of the stage.
The story is fast-paced (for the most part) and engaging, although it can become somewhat repetitive. The combination of such a rich visual language with hefty dialogue is also a lot to take in, with little room for reprieve during the show’s almost three-hour runtime. Still, this is exciting theatremaking for a Sydney stage, and it is well worth a watch, especially for the unfaithful revisionist approach to our gay history.
The Flea is a fitting reminder of queer history, and the struggles we still face, as the Sydney Mardi Gras Festival’s series of cultural events starts to rainbow-ify the city.
The Flea is playing at New Theatre, Newtown, until March 8. Find tickets & info over here.
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