Anthem

by Andrew Bovell, Patricia Cornelius, Melissa Reeves, Christos Tsiolkas and Irine Vela, with assistance by Bryan Andy

seen at the Roslyn Packer Theatre (Sydney) on 15 January 2020

Susie Dee directs a cast of fourteen in this work of joint authorship presenting a slice of various Australian lives as crystallised on train journeys made (mostly) in Melbourne. Each author created scenes from observed situations on trains, the results being woven together as a series of interlinked episodes unified by musical threads composed by Irine Vela.

A previous project from 1998 called Who's Afraid of the Working Class? has provided the springboard for the current work, which the authors claim to be tougher, with 'no moments of redemption or reassurance .... unrelenting in the conclusions it draws'. They are certainly right about the tone, which veers from rueful acceptance of the grind of commuting on crowded trains to the raw anger of cultural and class repression with very few lighter moments to relieve the sense of frustration and rage hiding barely beneath the surface. 

An inept attempt to hold a board meeting to account by two youngsters in possession of what they take to be a dangerous gun provides the most laughs, but their predicament arises from the crushing boredom of their low paid dead end jobs. A woman dispossessed and adrift after the breakdown of her marriage cannot understand why her former cleaner should disdain to show compassion, as she attempts to force the creation of a new friendship totally unwelcome to an Asian lady holding precariously to her own dignity. A young couple racing through trains appear to be engaged in the first throes of puppy love, but the man's actions suddenly seem dangerously coercive. A young woman returning her hyperactive son to his father is almost destroyed by the combination of official opprobriums levelled against her. An elderly Greek couple is bemused by the chaos around them in a country in which they sought refuge and which they see themselves as having helped to build.

All this is fascinating stuff often beautifully co-ordinated in small scenes of wary cross-recognition and avoidance, just as most people try to keep their personal space inviolate on a noisy and potentially disruptive train journey. Anger, rage and danger really erupt in protracted scenes in which three indigenous half-siblings are travelling together from the end of the line into the city to meet a brother long departed from Europe but back to 'help' them. One of the boys is borderline psychotic and barely restrained by his sister, but all are boiling with ill-feeling towards everyone they meet. The sense of threat is palpable, and most shy away from direct confrontation. when one woman protests the ensuing shouting match can, in the terms of the piece, go nowhere except a blackout.

This sequence, reverted to at least three times throughout Anthem, creates an imbalance in the overall structure, and prevents most of the other stories from becoming more than vignettes. This is a shame, as they too are intrinsically interesting and important, but they are too often starved of dramatic space and attention. However, the acting is excellent and the group dynamics well thought out; the stage design by Marg Horwell cleverly evokes train travel in various configurations without being over-elaborate or obstructive.

There are two framing devices. First, there is an excellent almost chorus-like evocation of the travails of commuting presented by the whole group, the morning commute at the beginning being reflected in the evening commute at the end which includes the aggravation of a delay caused by a track death (or suicide) which could be connected to a number of the stories we have witnessed. The second is an opening conversation between two Eurostar passengers, the indigenous young man about to return to Melbourne and a young Englishwoman, who discuss the likelihood of their delay's being caused by refugees attempting to smuggle their way through the Channel tunnel. This conversation is concluded at the end of the piece, so we know how badly the return to Melbourne will turn out for the young man - optimism crushed again by outcomes.

It's a provocative and often uncomfortable piece, but while the desire to show the state of things in all their rawness may be laudable as social commentary, it also works against making this successful in purely dramatic terms.