An Enemy of the People - 8 out of 10
St. Jude's Players
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St Jude’s Players and director Erik Strauts have taken on the immense task of staging an Australian adaptation of Ibsen’s An Enemy of the People. Adapted by Australian playwright Melissa Reeves, the play takes place in an Australian country town that has been revitalised by a new health spa that is bringing in the much-needed tourist dollar. An idea launched by our lead, Dr Kathrine Stockman, it is now on the brink of collapse after she discovers that the spring water being used has become contaminated with heavy metals. The spa – a risky public-private partnership – now threatens the town's economy, forcing Dr. Stockman to choose between truth and self-interest.
Cheryl Douglas’s portrayal of Dr Stockman captures Reeves’
take on Ibsen’s lead. While Reeves’ version lacks some of the nuance of Ibsen,
Douglas finds it again in the play’s final 2 scenes. Her impassioned pleas at
the public meeting do not fail to move the audience to her side, eliciting a
number of spontaneous exclamations of support. Her thoughtless condemnation and
ridicule of the lived experiences of Randine and the working class begins to
turn the audience against her and would succeed if not for the heavy-handed
writing by Reeves of her opponents.
Regan Holmes plays Dr Stockman’s daughter, Petra, a
20-something casually employed teacher’s aide. Holmes’ acting experience shines
through as she captures Petra's competing optimism and cynicism. She
convincingly portrays a sudden, strong friendship with Randine, which makes her
shock and confusion at her mother’s later tirade feel deeply authentic.
Russell Slater has the unenviable task of playing the least
likeable character in the play, Mayor Peter Stockman, Dr Katherine Stockman’s
brother. Initially appearing as an endearing brother fixing his sister’s sink,
he is quickly revealed to be focused on political and economic machinations. It
is a shift that Slater executes to the clear detriment of the other characters.
And whilst he tries to dress up his manoeuvrings as a noble concern for the town,
he’s mayor of or for his sister, it is eventually revealed as a naked desire to
maintain power and influence. Slater revels in this role and has created a
character the audience will love to hate till the last minute. The
vindictiveness in Slater’s voice during the public meeting as he exposes and
maybe exaggerates his sister’s mental health struggles after the death of her
husband is truly vile in the best possible way.
The town’s moral decay is reflected in the 'spineless' trio
of Hovstadt (Damien White), Billing (Mark Healy), and Aslaksen (Jack Robbins).
White captures Hovstadt’s opportunistic nature with care, though a lack of
predatory edge in Scene 3 leaves Petra’s reaction feeling somewhat ungrounded
and to appear either hysterical or as if she is fabricating the encounter. It’s
a rare moment where the performance and the narrative needs don’t quite align.
Healy, meanwhile, provides a visceral look at a man longing for more; his
transition from a scheming employee to a violent instigator in Scene 4 is
chillingly effective. Robbins rounds out the group as the weak-willed Aslaksen,
perfectly illustrating the 'groupthink' that the Mayor so easily weaponises.
Collectively, they represent the tragic ease with which self-interest can
dismantle personal conviction.
Randine (Annie Gladdis) is a vital addition to Reeves'
script, allowing the play to replace Ibsen’s eugenics with a sharp look at
class disdain. Gladdis carries a world-weariness that instantly wins the
audience’s sympathy, particularly when Dr. Stockman’s tirade turns toward her.
Countering this is Morten (Lindsay Dunn), the calculating patriarch of the
local sawmill. Despite limited stage time, Dunn conveys a chilling coldness,
making it clear that his financial blackmail is as much about control as it is
about profit.
Don Oakley and Strauts’ set is simple and succeeds in
conveying both the home of Dr Stockman and the health spa. The decision to use
the entire width of the stage for the patio in the opening scene felt
excessive. This wide staging caused lines delivered from the far corners of the
apron to be acoustically muffled. Fortunately, these lost lines were secondary
to the plot, but the lack of clarity in the opening was distracting. Xandra
Roberts’ lighting design was simple and made do with what is available in the
hall.
Erik Strauts comments in his director’s note that he enjoys
breaking the fourth wall and the way this play is written it is certainly
called for. While the production is staged well—particularly the public meeting
that casts the audience as townspeople—the breaking of the fourth wall risks a
loss of impetus. When the audience has already seen the Mayor’s schemes, they
invariably side with Dr. Stockman, making the 'mob' transition harder to buy
into. Indeed, the opening night audience was vocally on her side, even after
her ridiculing of Randine. This isn’t the fault of Strauts, however. The script
itself doesn’t do a satisfactory job of allowing the Mayor and his flunkies to
bring modern, socially aware audiences along for the ride of valuing the town’s
economy first and foremost before being shocked back to reality with the
inevitable outcome of mob mentality.
Ultimately, Strauts and St Jude’s Players have produced a
formidable piece of community theatre. While the Reeves adaptation occasionally
lacks nuance, this cast successfully breathes life into these complex
townspeople. Audiences will likely leave the theatre wondering if, when the
time comes, they would have the courage to do what is right – or if they would
simply do what is easy.
–Scott
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