THEATRE: THE SUICIDE

“Life is beautiful, life is shit …” with nothing but vomit and sausages in between. So goes the metronomic dilemmas of the unemployed and useless Semyon Semyonovich in Simon Stone’s re-penning of The Suicide, Nikolai Erdman’s 1928 classic tragifarce. It was originally banned for daring to poke fun at the absurdities of Bolshevik Russia, and only saw the light of the stage after the author’s death. In its contemporary incarnation, the absurdities remain rife – climate change, overpopulation, urban disenfranchisement and consumerism – and after a late night incident with a wiener, Semyon spits the dummy and runs out on his wife and her mother. Believing Semyon to be suicidal a frenzied fracas ensues, involving the opportunist neighbour Alexander Petrovich, his sluttish guest, and some political lobbyists seizing the chance to buy into the publicity a political suicide would generate. With far too heavy shades of slapstick than satire, this madcap gallop through witty writing and bizarre situations unfortunately becomes monotonous and borderline silly. Gareth Davies’ loose-limbed Semyon is truly a tragic figure, and his long-suffering wife Maria (Anne-Louise Sarks) brings the right mix of histrionic and humble. Other performers seem less convinced about the journey they’ve embarked on – to their credit they were prepared to put in a lot of energy anyway. No-one does absurdity like the Russians – and perhaps no-one should.

Until Apr 11, Belvoir St Downstairs, 25 Belvoir St, Surry Hills, $24-32, 9699 3444, belvoir.com.au