This Girl Laughs, This Girl Cries, This Girl does Nothing….Wow, this girl loved it. A brilliantly moving, enchanting and stunning tale that is reminiscent of the oldest and most well-known stories.
Courtesy of Barking Gecko
Starring Ella Hetherington, Jo Morris, Sarah Nelson and Drayton Morely, this play comes alive in the way movies do but without the aid of CGI and multiple takes to get the emotion “just right.”
The tale of three sisters, who each take their fate into their own hands when they are left to fend for themselves alone in a forest, is not only a shocking situation for the children watching but leaves adults reflecting on their own lives and how they have ended up where they are through their choices and the way they’ve perceived challenges put to them.
Through flawless choreography, all four characters rearrange the props and set to push the story into several situations and settings without losing the audience’s concentration or captivation. The ability for each of the actors to portray a range of other characters while rarely leaving the stage is incredible. Each of the cast is clearly extraordinarily gifted and the chemistry between them is perfect.
It is amazing how four people with limited lighting, props and space can tell a story this big. The tale moves through a war, complete with an explosive battles scene that left the front row finding themselves involved in the confusion as the dust settled around them. Literally.
An underwater adventure with an old lady who doesn’t like to share, was somehow 100% believable though there was no water onstage or anywhere else and the seemingly impossible task of building of a house in the middle of nowhere was all doable. Effortlessly retaining an emotional impact that actually brought a couple of older audience members to tears toward the end.
Quincy Grant, the sound designer, created an amazing aural backdrop that was almost totally constant during the action and provided seamless transitions between the scenes so they all flowed into each other like a film and Director, Noel Jordan must be a genius.
Finegan Kruckemeyer just might be Australia’s Tim Burton (which is the highest compliment I could ever pay anyone) and this is a story that has the potential to be timeless like some of Burton’s masterpieces.
This Girl Laughs, This Girl Cries, This Girl Does Nothing creates a world that’s kid and adult friendly, pulling all ages into a world that they feel reluctant to leave when it’s all over. This is definitely an amazing production and will become a memorable experience for anyone that sees it. It is amazing.
By Celeste Eden