Kid Stakes

Villanova’s production of Ray Lawler’s Kid Stakes, the first play in The Doll Trilogy, was a very happy walk down memory lane revisiting his iconic set of Aussie battlers.Once again it was set in a seedy two-storey Carlton terrace house in Melbourne, but eighteen years earlier than The Summer of the Doll in 1937. This was the era when you rolled your own smokes, every kitchen had an ice-chest, and blokes carried their bottles of beer in their Gladstone bags.

Down from Queensland for their lay-off, cane-cutters Roo and Barney hook up with milliners but soon-to-be-barmaids, Olive and her friend Nancy (only talked about in The Doll). The girls are happy to indulge in a seasonal affair, but by the end of summer secrets have been revealed and true feelings have surfaced.

The joy of the production was watching Leanne Shellshear as Olive, blossom from a young innocent girl into a not-so-innocent woman. It was a fine and impressive performance. Also good was Michael McNish who brought strength to Roo. Together they made a handsome couple. Lucy Moxon was a blousy, but beaut Nancy, while David Dellit found humor in the hard-drinking Barney.

Undoubtedly, Olive’s mum, Emma, is one of Lawler’s most enduring and accurate characters. In this version she’s younger but still cranky and sly,which Elizabeth Morris handled well. Shane Fell as the wimpy Dickie Pouncett (another new character) had little to do but be a bland unrequited secondary love interest for Olive.

At over two hours, the play by today’s standards is long, but director Leo Wockner kept it pacy despite some occasional lighting glitches. To help younger audiences the program wisely contained a glossary of out-dated Australian slang. The play is rarely performed in community theatres which is a shame. Although it may be second-tier Lawler and not as good as The Doll, it’s still a well-crafted character comedy with appeal.

Peter Pinne   

Photographer: Ian Colley.