After this long, enforced lockdown, I jumped at the invitation by the Toorak Times to review the new Cracked Actors Theatre presentation, of the 7th Floor Theatre production, of John Patrick Shanley’s play, “Where’s My Money?”
The first bravo must go to Sarah Yeung & Matthew Richard Walsh of Cracked Actors Theatre for surviving the lockdown on a wing and a lot of prayers. Thank God they did.
“Where’s My Money?” is an extremely witty, sharp and insightful look at the human condition, performed with skilful inspiration by Catherine Ward, Hayden Burke, Clare Hayes, Alexander Lloyd, Heather Bloom & Laurence Young.
Pulitzer Prize and Oscar-winning writer John Patrick Shanley’s masterful play deals with the lies we tell ourselves in order to deal with life. Yet, those same lies are the very thing that inhibits, distort and renders our lives impotent to the best of who we could be. Some of us kill the thing we love the most. Why? Is it because we fear the responsibility and pressure of giving our all to someone? To love fully requires letting our guards (and masks) slip, and taking a huge leap of faith, without a safety net. For, in love, it’s the safety net that kills us. To lead a secret life, means you have three in a relationship – you, your partner, and the big lie. And that lie will haunt you all the days of your life. Like a ghost debt collector hounding you for the money you owe, they won’t give up until the price has been extracted.
Hayden Burke’s direction is perfectly pitched and timed with rhythm of an expert musical conductor. The razor-sharp New York humour had me laughing many times and got the message of the play across to the audience in a seduction. Loved every minute of it, and so will you.
Other credits include – Assistant Director Catherine Ward
Set Design and Construction – Chris Ward
Lighting – David Silvester
Stage manager – Gabrielle Curtain
Artwork Sergeypykhoni – Dreamstime.com
Photography – GB Photography
Publicity by 7th Floor Theatre & Cracked Actors Theatre
Cracked Actors Theatre is situated at Level 1, 34 Lakeside Drive, Albert Park. Bookings: www.trybooking.com. Telephone: 03 9521 2571 Email: sarah.crackedactors@gmail.com
Reviewed by Frank Howson.
December 2020.
https://tagg.com.au/7th-floor-theatres-production-of-john-patrick-shanleys-wheres-my-money/
