THE CULTURE - Adelaide Fringe
Event: 07/03/2023 - 16/03/2023
By James Murphy, 7th March 2023
Patriarchy smashing Fringe theatre
After premiering in New York, the female-led Gadigal and Cammeraygal land based Powersuit Productions brings the social commentary of their two-hander, The Culture, to Holden Street Theatres at the Adelaide Fringe from the 7th to the 16th of March.
The Culture tells the story of woke and very single podcasters Katie (played by Laura Jackson) and LGBTIQ Will (Mina Asfour) as they battle catfishing, gaslighting and domestic abuse.
With a Bachelor of Fine Arts from NIDA, and a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the University of Wollongong, The Culture writer and star Laura Jackson has an immaculate creative pedigree. Alongside creative producer and tour director Carly Fisher, Jackson has assembled an all-female team, aside from costar Asfour, with everything from the direction and stage management to the sound and lighting design steered by women. With the play exploring important themes such as domestic violence, homophobia and disordered eating, Jackson says that the composition of the creative team has been important.
"Because of the subject matter, it's really great to have people in the room as we're sorting, solving and dealing with problems who understand the true context of the story," Laura says. "That's been the really lovely part of having female creators is that they can relate to my character and her experience." .
The Culture is a work that examines the existing paradigm on stage, while working to break it from side of stage..
"It's so important that we work together to sort out problems like why are the tech roles still predominantly led by men?" asks Carly "It's not always a gender thing; it may be an age thing. I've noticed within the young people coming up in the industry, it's a lot more mixed but when you look for people with a little bit more of a seasoned resume or a bit more experience, you can see the problems are there. It then looks like you're picking between gender and experience which is a really tricky situation to be in."
The piece, directed by Bethany Caputo, who worked with Bruce Willis on Broadway, explores weighty themes but does so with levity.
"The story is told through the really tight bond of two best friends so everything that you hear is told through the vehicle of their banter, their light comedic jokes and just the way that they are with each other," Laura says. "It's heavy themes with a light touch. It starts off warm and funny and as the story unravels, the ending does pack a punch."
The Culture touches down in Adelaide at Holden Street for Fringe before touring the extensively in 2023.
★★★★★
Adelaide Fringe. Powersuit Productions. Holden Street Theatres. 7 Mar 2023
By David Grybowski
This is a cracker of a play and performance! Because the revelation of information is so exquisitely written - so subtly moving under the radar of action - you may want the same experience I had by approaching it with little foreknowledge.
Safe to say housemates – a vivacious young woman and witty homosexual – are cosily comfortable in their flat, which takes on a kind of Covid self-isolation. Their portals to their surrounding urban universe are via their regular podcast to an army of followers and the occasional foray to work and dating entanglements. They cuddle and converse like never-ending friendship. Everything is OK until something goes wrong and the characters are profoundly tested.
Playwright Laura Jackson is highly credentialed and experienced. Most of her creativity focusses on women’s experiences with street harassment, domestic violence (ie: not safe anywhere), online privacy and fertility. Jackson notes that The Culture was first written in 2014 but is now tweaked for today, and things are only worse since Rosie Batty was Australian of the Year.
Laura Jackson has written a completely modern play that mirrors urbanites aged 20s or so with complete veracity – a complex milieu of connection and trepidation. Jackson also plays the young female with effervescent exuberance, a-teeter between confidence and fragility. Mina Asfour is a theatre creative working out of Western Sydney. His performance is like none at all – so realistic and natural. Together, their characters’ friendship, loyalty and spats make for an easy verisimilitude.
The original production was directed in New York by Bethany Caputo and made ready for the current tour by Carly Fisher. The detail in the direction fosters the pace and the poignancy. A screen showing phone texts and podcasts is extremely useful.
There is a message about domestic violence but the narrative focusses on the damage and the response, not on the perpetrator, and we cheer our dynamic duo for making good decisions.
A terrific tale told with delectable realism. Bravo!
P.S. The Robson Jackson Foundation supports a charity in each city of their tour; in Adelaide, it is the Western Adelaide Domestic Violence Service (part of Women’s Safety Services SA). The foundation will match donations of up to $2000 in each city - $10,000 in total. Get onto it.
The Clothesline ★★★★
by DavidCronin | Mar 8, 2023 | Adelaide Festivals, Adelaide Fringe Festival 2023, Physical Theatre, Reviews, Theatre
Theatre & Physical Theatre – SA Premiere, New South Wales]
The Arch at Holden Street Theatres, Tues 7 March, 2023.
The fast-paced dramatic action flows seamlessly in this well-written work. Good writing means the script sounds spontaneous and real, and the live podcasts peppering this show also make it immediate. In real time this performance is being shared by a far wider audience online, and they are responding with comments too. This gives the players a public forum for the issues in their private lives. They demonstrate how the multiplying factor of social media can be employed for the greater good, to expose what is normally kept away from view.
The themes of female empowerment and domestic violence are developed strongly in a gripping story, rather than by slogans. Some references are made by quoting exemplary figures like Julia Gillard and Hannah Gadsby. It is pointed out in context, for example, how it is the women who are the ones named and shamed whenever these recurring incidents are reported, and the men involved are not mentioned. Pulling no punches, we are drawn into the insidious spiral of one side of a relationship gradually taking control over the other person. This is all the more shocking when we have already met them, and we consider them well-educated about and aware of the traps to watch out for. The friction between the two flat-mates is palpable, as well as their longing for connection and understanding. The difficulties of modern dating, whether online or face to face are shown for both gay and straight. Fat-shaming and body-image also get thrown into the mix.
The play expertly dissects the damage that we inflict on each other due to our insecurities and our human needs. The baggage that we drag along we can use as our defenses. A light touch is maintained throughout while dealing with such serious subjects, by the banter between the two friends who want to keep their bond alive, even when it is strained to breaking point. Ultimately an honest friendship triumphs as the basis for true love, no matter what relationship those friends find themselves in.
Presented by: Powersuit Productions
Fringe review: The Culture ★★★★ ½
Female-led venture Powersuit Productions takes a swing at a raft of weighty issues in this fast-paced and feisty story about the power of friendship when love turns toxic.
Written by Rachael Mead
Heartfelt and swift-paced, The Culture is a deftly crafted two-hander exploring the pitfalls of searching for love in the modern world.
Katie (Laura Jackson) and Will (Mina Asfour) are best friends who have been inseparable since high school. Now, as young adults finding their feet in Sydney, they still share everything – from their apartment, to hosting a podcast, to the search for love. As a straight white woman and an LBGTQI+ man, they may have different perspectives on life, but they share a bond that seems unbreakable – until one of them falls in love.
Mina Asfour and Laura Jackson as Will and Katie in The Culture. Photo: Aden Meser Photography
From the intimacy of Will and Katie’s lounge room, we are swiftly pulled into the drama of their lives – their snappy couch banter naturally spinning into content for their podcast, “Don’t Even Get Me Started”. Katie is a feminist, and while her work at a marketing company may have her designing a campaign for a new pair of Spanx, her ideals mean she’s brimming with ideas about how to put an empowering gloss on shapewear. She even goes to her work’s Halloween party dressed as a vulva.
But when Katie begins dating a new man, Will is shocked to witness how quickly his best friend is losing her feisty individuality in the relationship.
Will is not having an easy time in his quest for love, either. He’s using a dating app, and while the relationship is progressing online, converting texts into in a real-life connection is proving problematic as it becomes clear that the other party is still in the closet.
With both swept up in their private struggles, their friendship is tested for the first time. Attempting to keep their podcast alive, the pair begin to post separately. But when one of Katie’s posts captures something deeply disturbing, it becomes clear how toxic her relationship has become.
With Bethany Caputo and Carly Fisher’s hands at the helm, the swift pace of The Culturedoesn’t feel rushed, allowing Jackson and Asfour to work their magic as they wing this tragi-comedy through its single act. The pair are magnetic, their chemistry a delight to watch.
Although this skilfully crafted play was initially written in 2014, the topics it touches on are sadly just as dire today. Domestic violence, homophobia, disordered eating – writer and co-star Laura Jackson has updated the political references and social media technology, but the statistics are not improving. Which makes The Culture an ideal fit for this female-led theatre company, whose objective is to shed light on women’s experiences in Australia. The play is written, directed, designed and managed by women, with actor Mina Asfour and graphic designer Brandon Wong the only non-female creatives in the impressive production.
Tackling serious issues with warm-hearted humour, The Culture handles the complexities of domestic violence with a strong, compassionate hand while shining a light on our culture which, in upholding the structures that disempower vast sections of our community, allows family violence to continue to thrive.