With the provocative punch of a newspaper editorial, new Ron Elisha play Rootless Cosmopolitans arrives promptly on stage with the timeliness and relevance that subsidised theatre could only dream about.
The subtitle “a dangerous comedy about not going quietly” could apply equally to two aspects of the play. Successful artistic director Ira may have lost his mother Freda in a tragic boiled sweet incident, but she haunts him still, ever rattling her “holocaust jar” and relentlessly judging the women in his life. Moved to profound anger by the events of October 7 last year, Ira’s public response sees him swiftly cancelled, leaving him adamantly determined to fight back.
Playwright Elisha swiftly and successfully captures audience attention with an early onslaught of wickedly funny one-liners. Elisha boldly reclaims the well worn trope of the Jewish mother, cleverly using the character as a kind of Greek chorus, providing an entertaining insight into the combative interior of Ira’s mind.
Taking its name from a historical antisemitic slur, Rootless Cosmopolitans deftly balances a solid enough narrative arc with the opportunity to make myriad comments about the insidious nature of racism as well as the frustration of creating art in the midst of what is seen as “woke” culture. The play is genuinely funny, briskly entertaining, and raises many a well-argued, thought-provoking issue to continue the conversation after the performance.
Working with minimal staging elements, director Suzanne Heywood ensures that the audience not only engages with the handful of characters, but also easily follows the movement of the story through the passage of time and space. The fantastical element of the ghostly mother is accepted as perfectly natural, and the social stakes faced by Ira are compellingly real.
Working with an uncharacteristically simple rig, lighting designer Jason Bovaird effectively draws the eye and supports the sense of location with well chosen silhouettes. Costume designer Kim Bishop neatly balances modern realism with a witty touch of theatrical flair.
Also serving as a producer for Monstrous Theatre, Anton Berezin anchors Rootless Cosmopolitans with a well judged portrayal of a man inexorably drawn into a downward spiral. Avoiding histrionics, Berezin completely plays it straight, making the character of Ira not only more realistic but also more sympathetic and endearing.
Babs McMillan is an absolute delight as the chronically judgemental Freda, her deadpan delivery allowing the withering material to be heard at its funniest.
Seon Williams brings integrity and poise to her role as Georgia Park, the young associate who finds herself on the fast track to success, helped, in part, by the number of boxes she happens to tick as a young Asian lesbian.
Emily Joy impressively does double duty as Ira’s glamorous wife Glenda and ruthless theatre company board member Viola. In discussions about diversity and privilege, Joy gives Viola an unflinching blindness to the protection of her own status.
Well placed to garner strong local support, Rootless Cosmopolitans is a terrific example of the power and quality of independent theatre.
Rootless Cosmopolitans plays at Chapel off Chapel, Melbourne until 2 June 2024. For tickets, click here.
The Rootless Cosmopolitans program can be read online.
Photos: Gavin D. Andrew