[THEATRE ~ ADELAIDE PREMIERE~ AUS]
Dunstan Playhouse, Wed 9 Nov.
Presented by State Theatre Company and OzAsia Festival, Adelaide Festival Centre.
The OzAsia Festival has been a wonderful platform for showcasing the vast artistic talents of our nearest continental neighbour, and Australians with Asian heritage. Single Asian Female is an impressive debut offering from Michelle Law and was OzAsia’s final event for this year’s festival.
It has already had successful runs in other major cities in Australia and NZ, and comments like “it’s unusual, and refreshing, to see myself up there on the stage!” have been common. So, Single Asian Female has been important in representing the lives of those who are not often seen on our stages and entertainment screens.
We are introduced to an Asian mum called Pearl who has been left in the lurch by her cad of a husband. Single-handedly she has continued to run the family restaurant and raise two daughters. The show begins with Pearl delivering an impressive karaoke performance of Gloria Gaynor’s I Will Survive.
Pearl has her hands full with two teenage daughters (Zoe and Mei) struggling with the usual issues typical of their age – identity, teenage angst, dating, studies, getting a job….. but thrown into this mix is their contempt for being stereotyped as Asian, and not being accepted as really Australian. It’s an age-old problem for people who were born in Australia but look like they’re from somewhere else, and who have to suffer the ‘where are you from’ question most days of their lives.
The play is laced with references to cultural stereotypes on both sides of the Anglo-Asian divide: Asians always run restaurants and love karaoke, and their parents always push their children to study hard. Australian men are all daggy boors – and this is occasionally quite funny. A scene that parades a succession of boorish young men that Zoe has dated works really well. In general the play was amusing rather than the it ‘will have you in stitches’ claim on the publicity brochure. However, given the show’s title and the kind of music that was played pre-show and during scene transitions, it is clearly intended more for younger audiences and not the generally elderly audience present at the average State Theatre Company performance. There was little real laughter and I don’t think anyone was ever in stitches.
Ailsa Paterson’s set design was stunning. From the posters on the wardrobe of a teenager’s bedroom to the folded napkins in the restaurant downstairs the attention to detail was wonderful. The Chinese lanterns strung across the bar and the open stairway to the upstairs bedrooms also added considerably to the visual spectacle.
It’s important to get stories of those who are not normally heard before the Australian public – particularly stories from cultures with their own rich and ancient heritage. And it is admirable to show us that many Asian-Australians who were born here live and sound much like any other Australian but the point felt a bit contrived at times. Despite the gravity of the issues it broached – racism, rape, teenage pregnancy, abortion, divorce – in the end it felt a little lightweight. None of these issues were dealt with in any meaningful way. Still, it was an entertaining evening featuring even performances from a talented cast.
3.5 stars
Michael Coghlan
Single Asian Female continues at Dunstan Playhouse, Adelaide Festival Centre, at various times, until Sat 19 Nov.
Bookings at statetheatrecompany.com.au and ozasia.adelaidefestivalcentre.com.au. Click HERE to purchase your tickets.
