The United States of Nothing
Witten and directed by Stephen Sewell
Starring Roy Billing, Katrina Foster, Kristian Schmid and Amelia Cormack
World premiere at the SBW Stables Theatre, Kings Cross, Sydney
To February 4
REVIEW BY HELEN JARVIS
With his latest play The United States of Nothing, Stephen Sewell continues to stake his claim as Australia's strongest political playwright. While billed as a comedy, with Simpsons characters on the poster, the play tells some dark truths as it relates the experiences of a white American family as they seek refuge in a Superdome from a hurricane. The stresses of the situation expose the awfulness of this family, especially in relation to their fellow human beings.
The self-declared head of the family, Chip (Roy Billing) is racist, paranoid and aggressive. He encircles "their" piece of the hallowed Astroturf with trip wire, and readies his pistol in case it should be invaded by the "niggers" predominating among the poor and huddled who did not manage to leave before the hurricane hit. Why this family had not fled like all their middle-class neighbours provides one of the stories that unravel — it was because Chip had not filled the family's SUV with gas as repeatedly requested by his long-suffering and demented wife Jackie (Katrina Foster). He had refused to pay the hiked rates and had apparently had one of his frequent racist fights with the Pakistani petrol attendant.
Chip, a former cop, relishes the idea of playing out his fantasy as the well-prepared defender of his family in the face of danger, but his emergency kit, purchased at discount rates, had food rations that were 20 years beyond their use-by date. Jackie showed her disconnectedness from reality by deciding the most important thing to bring along was the ironing, complete with iron and board, seeking solace in the Superdome by neatening and folding handkerchiefs. The two children made sure they had a sufficient range of drugs to help them through.
There are two main moments of truth in the play. At one point Chip steps out of character and to side stage to show that he really does understand what is driving the US, and that his family will join those simply abandoned as the city is rebuilt to suit big business. Jackie's monologue bitterly exposes the hollowness of their marriage and relationship.
In this play Sewell shows more Oscar Wilde than the Shakepeare that breathed in his strong and epic political works but, as ever, he brings important messages for the audience to engage with.
From Green Left Weekly, January 25, 2006.
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