Tony Award-winning playwright Terrence McNally's 'Frankie & Johnny In The Claire de Lune' comes to Adelaide.
Presented by STARC Productions, the show tells the story of two working-class middle-aged New Yorkers, in the final hours of a first date.
Frankie and Johnny embark on a journey of self-discovery and acceptance, with the creatives of STARC presenting the work in a simplistic way in order to pull focus on the actors on stage.
STARC's Marc Clement (starring in the show) answers questions about the story of human connection.
STARC Productions strives to create shows where the actor is central. Why is this?
STARC believes that the actor tells the story, and we like to keep focus on the message we are trying to get across. We don’t like to clutter the set too much with props and huge pieces that may distract from the story at hand.
What can audiences expect to see in 'Frankie & Johnny In The Claire de Lune'?
It's a story about a persistent romantic called Johnny trying to win the love of Frankie over the night of their first date. They both want the same thing but one is a pessimist, the other an optimist.
Why did you want to present this show in particular? What makes it a strong show?
STARC hasn’t delved into a romantic comedy yet. We like to keep our genres changing so each show is vastly different from the last. It is a tightly-written script from an amazing playwright called Terrence McNally who recently won a Lifetime Achievement award at this year's Tony Awards.
What kinds of themes in this show do you think will resonate with audiences?
Love is the overall theme and who doesn’t resonate with that to some degree? It's about being courageous and going after what you want, in a world that often doesn’t let you dream enough.
In an ideal world, what is your audience thinking/feeling as they leave the show?
We hope they leave with hope in their hearts and smiles on their faces. Hopefully they will go home and tell the people who mean the most to them that they love them and if they have been too afraid to approach someone or let them know how they feel, the will realise that life is short and now is the time to take that chance with anything and everything, because tomorrow may never come.
What do you believe makes a good theatre experience?
Theatre is the most powerful form of getting a message across. It's like a ball that starts rolling and can’t stop until the end of the show. Each performance is a little different, it becomes organic, a fulfilling fly-on-the-wall experience, it's a moment shared between actor an audience that cannot really be put into words.
How will you bring that to audiences at 'Frankie & Johnny'?
By staying true to our format of 'STARC by name, STARK by nature'. If we can, get our point across with the bare minimum on stage, just baring our souls honouring the author and respecting the script.
What are the biggest challenges in putting a show together?
STARC Productions is a well-oiled machine when it comes to putting on a show. Stefanie Rossi is a whizz at getting the logistics of the play up and running, organising the rights, music, rehearsal space, flyer, programmes etc. . . Whereas I'm on media, interviews, set building/props. We all get on the marketing side of things and just pitch in where we can and when we can. It's making it all come together on budget and on time.
And what is the biggest reward?
The biggest reward is when the audience walks out after feeling they have had their money's worth and start discussing in the foyer and giving us their interpretation of what happened. Obviously good reviews and a profit helps. . . !
