Children of the Sun
Maxim Gorky’s 1905 play, Children of the Sun, is revisited by celebrated playwright Andrew Upton and The Sydney Theatre Company. Delineated as a tragic comedy, this production has previously been very well received and it is now adapted further for its approaching STC curtain call featuring a prima cast: Justine Clarke, Jacqueline McKenzie, Chris Ryan, Toby Truslove and Helen Thomson.
“This version is slightly more streamlined than the original adaptation. It’s about a family circling around this mad scientist who’s on the verge of a great discovery around the time of the Russian Revolution. Everything is falling apart in this big, old, meandering house; he’s blinded to it and everyone else is trying to keep it together – inside the house and the chaotic outside world,” says Toby Truslove.
This intriguing backdrop is brought to life with Upton’s artistic direction and vision whilst dancing around social and political statements, and ultimately the exploration of those topics within a creative, colloquial context.
“Those people who are incredibly wealthy are sort of blind to the wider, imminent, falling down of their world. Being oblivious to other people’s misery, ultimately, will lead to your downfall,” says Truslove.
“It’s a big, rambling, heartbreaking and hilarious play,” he says. (RBM)
Sep 8-Oct 25, Sydney Opera House, Bennelong Pt, $50-99, (02) 9250 7111, sydneytheatre.com.au
BY ROCIO BELINDA MENDEZ
