Other Desert Cities

Other Desert Cities
By Jon Robin Baitz. Directed by Kate Cherry. Black Swan State Theatre Company. Heath Ledger Theatre, State Theatre Centre of WA, Perth, WA. Jul 20-Aug 4, 2013.

As the lights rise on Other Desert Cities, the audience are greeted with one of the most sumptuous and expensive looking sets ever to grace the stage of a Perth based play. A stunning Palm Springs mansion, complete with floor to ceiling windows, beautiful and elegant flooring and a pool deck with pool (and water), Christina Smith's set design literally sets the scene for a high quality production. This is clearly a luxurious and beautiful home, an oasis in the surrounding desert - a dangerous and inhospitable surround.

Rebecca Davis delivered a more than outstanding performance in the central role of Brooke Wyeth who is poised to publish a book that will reveal a family secret. This was a beautifully constructed portrayal, in a very demanding role.

Brooke's parents were impressively portrayed by Janet Andrewartha and Robert Coleby, her aunt Silda by Vivienne Garrett and her brother by Conrad Coleby. The cast created a credible shared past and their excellent characterisations worked well together.

The basic premise of Other Desert Cities could almost be soap operatic, but Jon Robin Baitz's script is well constructed and Kate Cherry's direction keeps the story interesting as a stream of unexpected revelations affect and change relationships between the characters.

Taking place mostly over the course of a single day, the progress of which is marked by Trent Suidgeest's gorgeous lighting design. Attention to detail in this production is supreme, not only on the set, which has an enviable gas fire coffee table, extensive filled bookcases and posters relating to the characters' history, but in Christina Smith's well selected costuming, which reveals much about the characters' taste, social standing and even state of mind.

A fellow audience member commented to me that this play was very much what they expected from our State Theatre Company and although Black Swan's repertoire has been varied this year, this is an interesting observation. This is a fairly uncontroversial, fresh, well written and very new play. Despite the language warning and some drug references, it is unlikely to offend any anyone and is very accessible theatre. A beautifully presented, finely acted production, this is a play to see, especially if you are going to see only a few shows in a year.

Kimberley Shaw

Photographer: Gary Marsh Photography.

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