The Weekend – REVIEW
Image: THE WEEKEND, Belvoir St Theatre: Toni Scanlan, Belinda Giblin, Melita Jurisic, Keila Terencio. Photo: BrettBoardman
Belvoir’s new production of The Weekend is an intelligent and tender exploration into the lives of three ageing women who are all at a turning point in their lives.
Adapted from Charlotte Wood’s best selling book by Sue Smith, and directed by Sarah Goodes, the witty and lean scrip provides an intelligent frame for this production’s three gifted actresses portraying life long friends who have come together to close up the house of a recently deceased friend.
Jude (Toni Scanlan) , Wendy (Melita Jurisic) and Adele (Belinda Giblin) who are now in their early seventies, find their relationships and themselves being tested by the event and the emotions surrounding it.
At first these raging middle class professional women fight for their individuality but later become united as they struggle with loss, melancholy, and a feeling of being adrift in life, interspersed with acute observations and at times hilarious retorts
They are supported onstage by a fourth lead, a puppet dog called Finn (created by Indigo-Rose Redding and handled by Keila Terencio), who is also in its latter years.
Joining then is Roman Delo in multiple roles, including that of an arrogant rising artist and a preacher.
Initially Scanlan’s Jude is the focal point around which the others must navigate, but as the play progresses this presumption comes into question.
Throughout, Scanlan’s presence is commanding, even when her character is shown to be as flawed as everyone else’s.
Giblin is a revelation as Adele, showing skill in portraying a character who reveals vulnerability and flightiness initially but becomes more defined as The Weekend progresses.
Her dance routine comes as a surprise and is just one of the production’s moments of levity.
But the character who delves into herself the most is Jurisic’s Wendy, who has the most questions about herself and her place in the world.
Jurisic gives us a strong performance that goes through many arcs and is always believable at its core.
With his commanding stage presence, Delo is strong across his various roles and shows considerable comedic skills handling his own dog.
Finn, Wendy’s puppet dog, captivates from the moment the play opens and, due the the skills of operator Terencio, captivates us with great moments of humour and pathos.
Goodes does a commendable job in directing with a light hand that puts the spotlight onto the taut and intelligent script and allows the skills of those on stage to shine.
The set (Stephen Curtis) is also pared back, initially just bare paint washed walls and a stage of wooden decking strewn with dead leaves, symbolising the end of a life cycle.
A simple wooden outdoor furniture setting on the decking becomes the centre point for the various scene changes, while Damien Cooper’s lighting takes us through the various mood changes in the script and is particularly effective in the final scene.
Music by Steve Francis provides a perfect bed for what is unfolding on stage and throwing Willy Nelson’s “Jingle Bells” into the mix is pure genius.
The Weekend is one theatrical experience this year that deserves many lives.
