June 2 - 21
TAP Gallery Darlinghurst

Catherine at Avignon 

REVIEWS FOR CATHERINE AT AVIGNON

"...rich dark humour and salacious moments...shimmering cast...startling moments of poetry...polished show..."  The Brag
(full review below)

……. verve of the storytelling….. There is something of Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern in the figures of the players, a triumph of narrative construction. Like Stoppard, Gilchrist is great with words, and amply demonstrates it in scene after scene of highly amusing and erudite verbal sparring. In the next instant… a superb and very playful rendition of modernist theatre.….. a very poignant take on the (modern) human condition …. the audience is treated to a subtle, and subtly informed, inquiry into theatre itself – as art, as entertainment, as philosophical meditation. Performances are uniformly strong …. Catherine of Avignon is a significant achievement in writing, direction and staging, and Paul Gilchrist is obviously a playwright …worth watching. I was very impressed with the ambition of this piece …. a testament to the structure of the piece and the poise of the writer. …….I urge theatre buffs in Sydney to have a look at Catherine at Avignon …..

http://reviews.media-culture.org.au/    (Full Review at bottom of page)

"Catherine at Avignon ...is a thought-provoking, uplifting performance that leaves the audience hopeful for a better world. Paul Gilchrist's script is clever and engaging... The performances are brilliantly executed." www.aussietheatre.com

  

Photographs by Greg Price       www.imagenetphotography.com 

In a world of corruption, decadence and intrigue, a lone woman confronts the most powerful institution of her times.

Bawdy and bloody, exotic and irreverent, Catherine at Avignon is bold new writing from the creator of 2008’s True Times Three. “I can’t really bring to mind the last time I laughed as loud and almost amidst it, felt the agony of intense, searing tragedy.” Australian Stage Online.

Set in fourteenth century France, and inspired by actual events, Catherine at Avignon is the story of an extraordinary personality. Branded a no one by her society, Catherine fearlessly took on kings and queens.

Avignon was to be her greatest challenge.

Sexy, passionate and very funny, Catherine at Avignon is exciting original theatre.

 

Written and directed by Paul Gilchrist

Produced by Daniela Giorgi

With Melissa Jones, Dave Kirkham, Heidi Lupprian, Rowan McDonald, Anna Martin, James Shoobridge

Designer Emma Vine

TAP Gallery
278 Palmer Street, Darlinghurst.
June 2 – 21, Previews June 2 & 3,

Tuesday to Saturday 8pm, Sunday 5pm
$25 / $20, Cheap Tuesdays (min $12)
Preview Tickets $10

 REVIEW: Media-Culture.org

Catherine at Avignon

Bruce Isaacs     http://reviews.media-culture.org.au/

 

There are several theatre spaces scattered throughout Sydney that offer the attraction of independent productions and the promise of original, daring material. Of course, there is a wealth of creativity and verve that misses the popular venues, struggling to find a home in the larger theatres. The TAP Gallery in Darlinghurst, one of Sydney’s very hip enclaves off Oxford St, is one such space and it was with genuine interest

that I went along to the opening night of Catherine at Avignon, a new play by writer/director Paul Gilchrist.

Gilchrist seems intimately acquainted with the bones of the story – apart from the verve of the storytelling, he offers a pretty decent history lesson. And it’s a fascinating history. Apparently Gilchrist had been toying for several years with

channelling the historical drama of Catherine into one textual form or another – after a shot at a novel, he turned his attention to the dramatic mode, reconstructing what is

essentially a story of courtly intrigue and a (albeit riveting) religious, political and sexual context into a very distinct, and wholly contemporary, dramatic recreation.

Independent theatre often runs on its own steam, funded by like-minded artists and creative souls intent on producing original and highly personal work. This is a great attribute, and the spirit of independence is writ large on this production. It’s even infectious in the pre-play wander through the gallery itself, expressing an artistic intimacy that infuses art gallery and theatrical space alike. However, independent theatre is also subject to the constraints of funding, time, scheduling and the difficulties of mounting any production, large or small, with a limited cast and crew. In spite (or perhaps because) of these limitations, the great achievement of Gilchrist is to anchor the play in a dramatic tradition. There is something of Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern in the figures of the players, a triumph of narrative construction. Like Stoppard, Gilchrist is great with words, and amply demonstrates it

in scene after scene of highly amusing and erudite verbal sparring. In the next instant, these same players effortlessly metamorphose into the existential abjects of Beckett’s

Waiting for Godot. The occasional philosophising of Player 2 (James Shoobridge), turning Beckett’s existentialism against the religious idealism of Catherine seems a little heavy handed at times, as if Gilchrist’s ambition had exceeded the span of the story. But such moments are rare in what amounts to a superb and very playful rendition of modernist theatre.

The liberal doses of dramatic references and a very poignant take on the (modern) human condition elevate Catherine of Avignon far beyond a trite reading of history. Instead, the audience is treated to a subtle, and subtly informed, inquiry into theatre itself – as art, as entertainment, as philosophical meditation. Performances are uniformly strong – Anna Martin captures something soft and innocent, yet magisterial

in Catherine; noteworthy are Shoobridge and Dave Kirkham as ribald, wildly (and wonderfully anachronistically) profane players. Shoobridge’s “But you spoke to the fucker” had me, honestly, in tears. Rowan McDonald’s take on a pious Rowan

Atkinson is a lot of fun and Melissa Jones as Marguerite is a bawdy standout. Perhaps Heidi Lupprian’s Eloise begins somewhat awkwardly, revealing too clearly the games

Gilchrist wants to play with history. But the performance soon gathers momentum, and her charged emotional scenes in the final act are excellent.

Catherine of Avignon is a significant achievement in writing, direction and staging, and Paul Gilchrist is obviously a playwright (and perhaps writer) worth watching. I was very impressed with the ambition of this piece – it’s rare to see a new play take on high modernism’s aesthetic range while offering a treatment of canonical history. That it works at all is a testament to the structure of the piece and the poise of the

writer. For the small space, and an understated, almost minimalist aesthetic, perhaps the narrative itself outlasts its welcome. I’d like to have seen a final act guided by action, something approaching the arc of a more classical form of theatre. But this is not a criticism. I urge theatre buffs in Sydney to have a look at Catherine at Avignon and feel the allure of the TAP Gallery and its excellent hosts.

REVIEW:  The Brag   

REVIEW:  www.aussietheatre.com
Catherine At Avignon
TAP Gallery Theatre, Sydney; Subtlenuance
Thursday, June 4, 2009. Opening Night Performance. Review by ROCHELLE FERNANDEZ.

"Catherine is based on actual events and follows the story of Catherine of Siena (Anna Martin) — later Saint Catherine, who comes to Avignon with a message, apparently from ‘above’, for the weary Pope Gregory (Dave Kirkham) — return the papacy to Rome, or else. However, Catherine meets with much resistance from those who benefit from having the Holy See in France, specifically a corrupt cardinal (James Shoobridge) and ‘Madame’ Marguerite (Melissa Jones) who despite sounding (and looking) likes she owns a brothel, is actually the Mother Superior of the Convent.

Having attended catholic school and had doctrine rammed down my throat for much of my own life, Catherine is a much-needed gasp of fresh air, replacing doctrine with morality and corruption with common sense. If many of our own politicians watched this they might come away with a few ideas on how to govern. The play also manages to poke fun the institution of the church without condemning religion or faith — something not altogether easy.

Paul Gilchrist’s script is clever and engaging – with just the right amount of biblical references mixed in with a hearty dose of pragmatism. The performances are brilliantly executed — Martin’s Catherine has a permanent celestial bemused expression, while Rowan McDonald is heart-warming as the earnest Father Raymond. Heidi Lupprian performs well in the role of the seemingly sweet but cunning Eloise, but steals the show with her haunting singing. Kirkham and Shoobridge each play two roles – their principal role and that of a traveling actor (the actors actually have the most profound lines of the performance) and they shift between the two effortlessly — Shoobridge’s actor particularly evokes memories of Quasimodo.

Catherine at Avignon is a simple yet powerful story of doing what is right, regardless of what is easy or comfortable. It is a thought-provoking, uplifting performance that leaves the audience hopeful for a better world."

 

REVIEW: Alternative Media Group

http://www.altmedia.net.au/theatre-catherine-of-avingnon/7425

 

P.G. Gilchrist’s newest work Catherine of Avignon is a thought-provoking piece on the importance of truth and purity of spirit in a world gone mad. P.G’s vehicle for his idealistic message is real life historical figure, Catherine Benicassa.  A well-regarded 14th century ‘mystic’ who had religious ‘visions’, the play follows her journey to the court of Pope Gregory XI in 1347, where she successfully persuaded the papacy to return to Rome. The consensus was that this would unite the warring Italian peninsula.

 

Though the set is almost non-existent and the costuming budget obviously tight, I am nonetheless transported back in time via the powerful performances of the entire ensemble. Inquiring and at times wickedly funny, I laugh out loud at many of the best lines expertly timed by Melissa Jones, who plays the wonderfully wanton Marguertie. Anne Martin is also a standout, giving a impassioned and inspiring performance as the headstrong religious zealot/political activist Catherine.

 

Written by director P.G Gilchrist, the script is the real star. Both poetic and whimsical, Gilchrist seamlessly weaves olde English and 21st century language to jolt us between yesterday and today at will. The problems and the turmoil of the 14th century are clearly still relevant to today’s crazy world.

Until June 21. TAP Gallery, 278 Palmer Street, Darlinghurst. $20-25 (Cheap Tuesdays, min $12