My Sister Feather. The Grief Trilogy: Part Two

My Sister Feather. The Grief Trilogy: Part Two
By Liv Satchell with Emily Tomlins and Belinda McClory. La Mama Courthouse, 349 Drummond Street, Carlton. 8 -12 March 2023.

This second instalment in the trilogy explores grief from an entirely different perspective and highlights a very universal and recognisable relationship. Tilly (Belinda McClory) and Egg (Emily Tomlins) are sisters with a very troubled history. Their encounter carries both the weight and the lightness of their history. Their conversations are mostly set in the present during this one meeting, but the text uses flashbacks to their childhood to help give shape and scope to the complexity of their difficult rapport. 

Tomlins is extraordinary in her ability to capture her character’s mood and disposition through her expressive face and physicality. She conveys the emotional scars of her character with such clarity and force that it easily invites deep empathy. Her transition to her childhood self is an extremely powerful transformation and shows how life events can completely crush one’s optimism and enthusiasm. McClory is equally impressive in her forceful portrayal of Tilly. Her nervousness is beautifully captured in her manic dialogue, and she takes on the demands of such a performance with enormous precision. This creates a fantastic contrast to Egg’s stillness and preference for silence, making the tension between them very palpable. The key to the mystery of their mother’s disappearance in their infancy may very well be in the two letters that their mother has addressed to each of them. The letters sit on the stage quite ominously, almost threatening a tragic revelation. The presence of the letters is skilfully used to create intrigue, and this allows some of the dreadful details of the life of the sisters to gradually unfold.

This play will resonate with anyone who has a tumultuous relationship with a loved one. It also acknowledges that there is no way around such difficult encounters and that powering through them, regardless of the pain and anguish, is often the only option available. Watching a toxic yet also loving relationship unravel in this manner is almost like watching a disaster in real time. Its confronting inevitability challenges the author, the actors and the audience to traverse some very difficult and revealing psychological spaces. 

Patricia Di Risio 

Photographer: Darren Gill

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