Photo by Brett Boardman

We live in the age of multimedia bloat. Feverishly we try to cross borders that we have invented for ourselves. Everything needs to be super fast, super high, super far, super rich, super old, super long, super fat or thin.
Gone are the times of reflection? The superlative has become the credo of our striving.

Once you enter the auditorium of the Stables Theatre you will need to leave all the above behind. You will step into a very private world. You soon will feel like a voyeur, unaware that you are actually watching yourself. What you will witness is possibly an account of your own, very secret inner struggles. It seems like an eternity since I was privileged to see a play of such integrity, tenderness and ruthless honesty.

Tom Holloway has created a marvel. His play is so full of wit and compassion that it is breathtaking. Pam and Don, the protagonists of And No More Shall We Part, face the ultimate challenge of their long life together. The acceptance of mortality. To comprehend the meaning of dignity. To overcome useless selfishness and allow fear as remedy for speechlessness. Holloway’s feeling for effortless text flow and flawless timing leaves no room for criticism. Particularly he dissects the delicate matter and gives his audience the chance to come along on the long road to forgiving comprehension. And he succeeds in creating an atmosphere of acceptance, where there is normally only room for fear and ignorant defence. What an accomplishment.

Director Sam Strong and his team Victoria Lamb (Design), Verity Hampson (Lighting Design) and Kelly Ryall (Composer) have created an atmosphere of domestic cosiness. The set is homage to Naturalism. Everything has its correct place. There are even tissues on the mantelpiece. The décor still allows room to breathe and let your thoughts flow. The lighting design is appropriate and creates a perfect atmosphere for each emotional development. The music, in spite of its minimalism, is haunting and allows the audience to reflect, before crossing over into the next scene. Sam Strong directs his actors with ease and gives them a secure platform to shine. His sense for space and movement takes the audience on an almost 3D like performance experience. Even when the actors are off stage we still seem to see them. Effortless he guides Pam and Don through an ever changing variety of rhythms. He celebrates pauses so they can hurt. Almost as if he is conducting a complex symphony. That is directing craft at its best.

Linda Cropper plays Pam. No, she is Pam, the woman who had made the decision to depart. Her body language is immaculate. Her countenance is mesmerising. Here we have a fearless actress, not afraid to give away and share her deepest secrets in the most unrelenting way possible.

Russell Kiefel as Don is equally admirable. His polished skills are a delight to watch. There is not one moment his Don is not believable. His timing, his feel for pauses, his courage to let himself go. is amongst the finest I’ve seen.
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These two actors let us participate in a tour de force of almost unbearable measures. When they take their final bows they are visibly exhausted and shattered. They are the perfect example of Arts Gratia Artis and deserve not only applause but a truly heartfelt Bravo with many Da Capos to come.
Near the end of the play there suddenly is the moment of ultimate truth.
After all the forced humour, helpless anger and fruitless arguments Pam and Don quietly share their Last Supper. When both of them let their true, but hidden emotions flow, we witness one of the magic moments of life theatre. The absolute transparency of the human kind.

And No More Shall We Part is not the story of the ultimate exit. It is the legitimate account of the inevitable entrance. The centre peace in my study is an artwork titled Entrance and Exit. The artist, Alois Dorn, chose the method of woodcuts for his work. Wood + Coal = Diamond. When Dorn was eight years old he buried a box of tightly compacted carbon in his backyard, hoping, it would turn into a diamond in the years to come. Today it looks like he buried his little treasure box underneath the Stables Theatre. May be the Griffin Theatre Company is a mining giant in disguise? With the production of And No More Shall We Part Tom Holloway, Sam Strong and their marvellous team are certainly on their way to turn our self indulged Emerald City into the most precious of all:
A Diamond.

Markus Weber, 4 August 2011
And No More Shall We Part is playing at the Stables Theatre
from 29 July to 3 September.

© 2011 by Markus Weber, Emu Productions (theatre & music) Pty Ltd