Once again, Noni Hazlehurst is arresting and transformative in ‘Mother’.
The production has had a few incarnations now – this reviewer was lucky enough to see ‘Mother’ in 2018 in Brisbane, and the presentation and relevance of its subject matter has only grown stronger since.
This work is deeply moving and feels incredibly real. Noni embodies homeless woman Christie, a profoundly nuanced role which has beats of comedy, visceral angst and sadness, and empathy. A one-woman show, ‘Mother’ is essentially a character study. . . An exploration of a woman who has been shaped by her life experience.
The set and lighting add real dimension here – leaves strewn across the ground, an old fridge on its side, a bed built of milk crates and an old mattress. Sound design is stellar too, the calls of magpies and crows echo through the theatre and passing trains and cars place us right on the streets with Christie.
One of the hallmarks of the character is her voice. It’s gritty and weathered, worn down by drugs, alcohol, trauma. Noni delivers this tone for the show’s entirety – a feat in itself – as she takes us on the spoken-word journey of her life up to this point.
The light and shade of ‘Mother’ is one of its most appealing touchstones. Noni has the ability to carry the work into a place of total darkness, stumbling on her words and telling us a harrowing story, before ripping us from it with an offbeat joke, erupting the theatre into laughs. On the contrary, a moment of lightness and humour can just as swiftly veer into sadness. . . And the room is as still and quiet as if Noni was the only one in it.
Image © Brett Boardman
It’s these clever and unexpected moments in the work which are, of course, so expertly portrayed by Noni. . . But also written just so beautifully by Daniel Keene. In a post-show function, it’s revealed by Noni herself that the script was written by Daniel in ten days – a number which makes all in attendance gasp. After seeing the work and being so moved by it, it’s truly hard to believe it came together so quickly.
Of course, the messaging here is paramount. Noni’s dedication to the work – as confirmed in the function where she admits to turning down other plays over the years only to return to ‘Mother’ – is a signifier that she truly cares about the character and the subject matter. This is a story grounded in something very real. . . Something most of us witness very often in our day-to-day lives – to the point where we simply turn a blind eye out of habit.
The take-home for this piece? Find compassion for those on the margins, take the time to get to know them, and to understand them. It’s a perfect example of a piece of art which is greater than the sum of its parts, encouraging attendees (in a stunningly subtle way) to leave the theatre viewing the world around them, and those who inhabit it, a little differently than they perhaps did before.
★★★★★
