The Events

Claire is an Anglican priest who leads a Community choir. The Events shows us what happens to Claire after a terrible experience, as she attempts to understand what happened and come to terms with the experience.

Catherine McClements plays Claire with depth and passion, an interesting character who has many layers and is the show’s compelling force.

Johnny Carr appears as The Boy whose actions have changed Claire’s life forever. Possibly because of the impact the boy has made, he “becomes” the other significant people in her recovery, including Claire's girlfriend and therapist. This structure takes some time to be clear, but Carr’s performance is strong and interesting.

At each performance a real-life Perth community choir shares the stage, playing Claire’s choir and giving a musical commentary and emotional edge to the story, singing the compositions of John Browne, Opening Night’s choir was Rhythmos, a young dynamic and diverse choir, based at Curtin University, who have recently returned from a performance at Carnegie Hall. A strong and beautiful choir, they serve functions other than musical, becoming part of the action and assuming small roles. Seated behind the action at times, watching their reactions to the play, is certainly part of the experience.

Other choirs to perform include Churchlands Choral Society from Floreat, the Indie Mix Pop Choir who meet at Inglewood’s Civic Hotel, The Mighty Camelot Chorale from Mosman Park, the auditioned choir Voyces and St Barnabas Community Choir based at the Anglican Church in West Leederville (a very similar background to the choir in the play). Geoff Cosham is both set and lighting designer, so it is perhaps not surprising that the lighting is an integral part of the set - an overhead rig that mimics a community hall, but provides evocative, emotive lighting.

The Events is a moving, beautifully acted performance, which slowly reveals a fascinating story. The use of the choirs is much more than a gimmick and is a wonderful showcase of some of Perth’s talented choral groups.

Kimberley Shaw

Photographer: Daniel J Grant