Rules for Living

Stem Cell scientist Sam Holcroft broke all the rules for predictable career progression when she did a complete role twist and became a playwright, but such twists have served her well; not only has she been very successful and awarded in her role reversal, but a talent for twisting a narrative has been bestowed on her too.

Such is the case for her contemporary comedy Rules for Living, set in the home of Edith and disabled Francis on Christmas Day. Holcroft has refreshed the age-old comedy premise of a dysfunctional family reluctantly getting together for a tense and hilarious festive season; the playwright gives each character an internal voice, that person’s ‘rules for living’. Edith, the hostess, must clean and self-medicate when stressed, younger son Matthew must sit down to tell lies, older son Adam must use a different accent when mocking or correcting others…and so on. And as the narrative progresses each person’s ‘rules’ become more complex.

While the writing is clever, with both laugh-out-loud moments and very real poignancy, it also lags a bit at times, though never enough in Adelaide Repertory Theatre’s SA Premiere production to overly hinder audience enjoyment. The cast is mostly able to rise above these issues.

Penni Hamilton-Smith is totally hilarious as Edith, the mother of adult sons who is completely obsessed with giving her recently disabled husband Francis a wonderful Christmas lunch with his family. Everything has to be perfect…or else. Hamilton-Smith creates a wonderful character who is at once loving, pedantic, manipulative and consumed by anxiety-mixed intermittently with breakouts of show-stopping and very funny frustration and anger.

Despite being in a wheelchair for the entire play and having little dialogue, Norm Caddick is terrific as Francis, a man who, while having one disabled arm, has another very able and hilariously wandering hand.

As Matthew, Chris Eaton takes a while to warm up but does good work with the conflicted nature of the character, even though Matthew’s need to sit and/or eat every time he tells an untruth creates some minor issues for smooth and consistent characterisation.

Megan Doherty is delightful as Matthew’s girlfriend Carrie, a ‘free spirit’ who is ruled by a need, among her other ‘rules,’ to stand when telling jokes. Doherty has developed a multi-layered character who is both naïve and knowing. She deftly creates the gradual slide from Carrie’s initial desperation to impress Edith and the family through to her wildly uninhibited behavior later when she has had a few drinks, her inner ‘rule’ is rampant and she realises the truth behind her relationship with Matthew. 

Steve Marvanek plays the difficult role of the sarcastic, insecure older brother Adam very well, drawing on a range of accents to obey Matthew’s inner ‘rule’. Adam’s bewilderment, suspicious nature and insecurity shine through his bluster as the narrative continues.

A standout in Director Megan Dansie’s cast is Jaye Gordon as Sheena, a woman desperate to reduce the impact on her young daughter Emma that the impending collapse of her marriage to Adam could cause. Gordon has a fine grasp of the conflictions in her character’s mind and she brings out both the comedy and pathos in a nuanced, controlled performance.

At the show I attended, Alicia Hammond played the late-entrance role of young Emma with sweetness and strong stage presence, as I am sure Emily Hodgkison does on alternate performances.

The hysterically funny and farcical food fight scene has been very well choreographed and had the audience laughing heartily. If only the playwright had closed the comedy with this though, especially when Edith side-splittingly joins in, instead of adding a short period of low key ‘goodbye’ scenes to finish; an unneeded postscript which undermines the highs of the previous climactic lunch scene.

Rules for Living is different. It’s also delicious fun, so make sure your internal voice sets you a rule to head along to the Arts Theatre to see the show.

Lesley Reed