The Removalists at Actors Centre Australia, 2 June 2023
Reviewed by Sumaya Sultana
Director Harry Reid’s re-imagination of The Removalists successfully translates playwright David Williamson’s seminal work into our contemporary Australian context. My tickets to the closing show at Actors Centre Australia were well spent – the exploration of Australian culture and its relationship with authority in this dramatic slice of life play was quite intriguing.
While The Removalists has been around for over 50 years, there may be some of you who are unfamiliar with the plot. It revolves around two police officers, Constable Ross and Sergeant Simmons, who investigate a situation of domestic violence and suggest that the victim, Fiona, should move out that Friday with the help of a Removalist. The night she decides to move out, her ‘stuck-up’ sister Kate, and her abusive husband Kenny cause enough trouble that the night ends with Kate exposed as a cheater, Kenny dead and Ross and Simmons in a fist-fight. The play was created as a microcosm of Australian society in the 60’s, clearly shown through its focus on ‘ocker’ culture and power.
The performances on the night were highly commendable, with each actor clearly putting effort into their character and making a somewhat grim play much more enjoyable. I felt that the characters of Kenny and Fiona were especially well played, with their dynamic being uncomfortable and downright unsettling. Fiona’s complicated relationship with her sister is very fascinating as well, and her actress does an amazing job.
The tense mood of the night was the result of a heavy hand from the actors, but the use of staging and outfits also significantly contributed to the eerie feeling. Being an observer to Constable Ross’ abuse of Kenny had lots of depth to it especially due to the decision to have a lot of the gruelling violence take place off-stage; the audience has to witness Kenny’s sounds of pain and Ross’ deranged behaviour even if they do not see it happening. The costuming decisions with Kenny, Fiona and Kate successfully tie the play closely to the audience’s contemporary context, with Kate’s gaudy clothes and clacky jewellery combined with Fiona’s simple pieces reminding the audience that the issues explored in Williamson’s play are still heavily prevalent today.
While some aspects of Williamson’s original script have been removed from Reid’s rendition of The Removalists, the two creative visions worked together to create a mostly enjoyable play. While I felt that more could have been done to improve the quality of the staging, the acting greatly overpowered any issues in that area. The narrative structure itself is also remarkable – even if the first act is much shorter than the second it doesn’t feel jarring whatsoever and the story feels very seamless. However, there is a distinct issue with female agency in the play. Cast member Talia Benatar, who plays Kate, highlighted this in the Q + A section and voiced feelings about the subject as well. Even though Kate and Fiona play an integral part in the play, the sisters don’t have many lines in the play and the way that they are often described in the script is strange to say the least. Fiona’s characterisation throughout the play is a key example of this as she is often trodden over by other characters in the play, primarily men.
Regardless, Williamson and Reid’s exploration of various other themes present in the play – mainly violence and power – is well done, with Reid’s directorial vision paying homage to Williamson’s work whilst also somewhat shaping the play for a contemporary context. The Removalists executes the theme of violence as a societal tool extremely well, showing the audience how it is used as a tool by the police to subjugate Kenny, and also the “implications” of violence as shown with Kenny and Fiona’s relationship – we never see him be physical with her even though we know he is abusive, which makes their marriage that much more unsettling. The focus on power is well done as well, with the play’s messaging about abuse of power and its societal consequences clear to every audience member.
The Removalists clearly deserves its title as a classic Australian play as it dissects some of the most hampering issues that our society deals with in an extremely well developed manner. I felt that while there could have been more work done to emulate our context’s social change, in particular through the use of staging, it was definitely worth the watch.