Super Discount

Following its successful Sydney season, Super Discount has started its Melbourne run at the Malthouse Theatre. Extremely challenging, provocative, intelligent and confrontational, it is a piece of theatre that will not appeal to everyone, and indeed may well unsettle many people - for which very reason, everyone should see it.

As the play opens, it takes a while before we understand what we're watching: a company of actors auditioning for someone to play the role of a 'superhero'. But not in the usual sense. This superhero character is based on one of their company's own members, who is considered unable to play himself due to disability which will prevent him from being sufficiently understood by the audience. In fact all but one of the performers are in some way "disabled" and the play is all about examining and confronting preconceptions, attitudes, prejudices, discrimination both positive and negative and issues arising therefrom. I use the quote marks around disabled to emphasise that such limitation in no way compromised the quality of any performance. On the contrary, this piece is constructed in such a way as allows the actors’ real strengths to shine - they perform so ably that the term disabled in this context is a misnomer.

Stage Whispers has already reviewed the Sydney season so rather than repeat what was already said in that article I'll just emphasise this is that truly rare beast, a genuinely original piece of theatre, executed with utter professionalism by a cast of strong performers. It may make you uncomfortable, it may challenge you, it may disturb you - but most importantly, it will move you, and it will make you think.

Alex Paige

Whitney Fitzsimmons also reviewed the Sydney season

What makes a superhero? Do they actually exist in real life or are they mythical creatures that only live in our imaginations? Or perhaps they are ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances.

These are the questions and themes explored in the latest co-production between Back to Back and the Sydney Theatre Company, titled Super Discount.

This is an interesting and at times challenging piece of theatre. Bruce Gladwin’s direction gives the cast adequate space and freedom to realise the potential of the production and there is sufficient light and shade, pathos and comedy.

However, as stated, it is uncomfortable and there are times when laughing at the magnified disability of an individual doesn’t sit right. But this is addressed by one of the most interesting points in the show where the disability vs ability question is turned on its head, leading to commentary about whether praise or criticism of work by disabled performers can ever really be believed because it’s tempered by an audience wanting them to be good and judging them by a different set of standards. Wheels within wheels.

The superhero theme is entertaining and lends itself to some classic lines such as “You have a laughing mouth on a depressed face,“ and “Lycra is my friend”. It also teases out the idea that every superhero is a flawed human being; that they are superheroes because of their flaws and not in spite of them.

Whitney Fitzsimmons

Images: (top) Mark Deans, Simon Laherty and Brian Tilley; (middle) David Woods, Sarah Mainwaring and Mark Deans & (lower) Brian Tilley, Simon Laherty and David Woods  in Back to Back Theatre’s Super Discount. Photographer: © Jeff Busby