Edward Gant’s Amazing Feats of Loneliness

This show has more hoopla and razzle dazzle than your usual theatre fare. Not surprising, drawing as it does, on the style of nineteenth century travelling shows. You can expect magic and wonder, gorgeous costumes (from fashion house Romance Was Born), and occasional assaults on your sensitivities (Warning! Don’t wear pearls!) all done with panache and tongue firmly in cheek.

Just as the audience lapses into an amused fantasy world, we are startled back to reality. Expect the unexpected from this show.           

Amazing Feats won’t be to everyone’s taste. It is a freak show ─ normal actors whose characters have freakish minds. Maybe we should blame the playwright for that. Or the original Edward Gant. Certainly the acts end in disappointment and loneliness.

Paul Bishop (the flamboyant Edward Gant) relished this chance to step out of his usual ‘attractive lead’ character. He is the wily entrepreneur. Emily Tomlins was at her ‘forlorn and exploited’ best in the characters she played; and Brian Probets played ‘staunch and devoted’ with his characteristic levity. Lindsay Farris, the disenchanted talent called on to play a divisive sister, minstrel, poet and an incompetent Indian fakir, he is the one to watch.

Versatile sloping set (Renée Mulder’s design and Josh McIntosh’s construction), another wonderful soundscape from Steve Toulmin, super lighting design (Damien Cooper) … in fact director Sarah Goodes extracted the best from her entire team!

See for yourself!

Jay McKee

Images: Top -  Emily Tomlins. Lower - Lindsay Farris. Photographer: Al Caeiro

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