NIDA is not only Australia’s most famous acting school but, on occasions also presents professional productions. Recently, the NIDA Company along with the SBW Foundation presented a revival of one of the classics of the Australian theatre, Bob Herbert’s ‘No Names…No Pack Drill’.
‘No Names…No Pack Drill’ is set in wartime Sydney in 1942. After recovering from a gunshot wound sustained during a battle at Guadalcanal. 24 years old Marine Sergeant Harry ‘Rebel’ Porter (David Lyons) docks in Sydney and decides he’s had enough of fighting. After drowning his sorrows in a Kings Cross pub, Rebel is invited to a party in a young woman’s apartment, and ends up crashing the night. Sydney postal worker, Kathy McLeod (Bridie Carter) is just 28 with both her husband and brother both away fighting in Papua New Guinea. Kath finds the US Marine asleep in her lounge room and wants to rid herself quickly of her uninvited guest. But later that morning a telegram arrives and her whole world changes.
The current head of Acting Tony Knight directed the production, and selected his team from over five decades of NIDA acting and creative talent. This was my kind of theatre, where one could easily work out the kind of people Herbert’s characters were, and then enjoy spending a couple of hours in their company, and watch them cope with the situations they encountered.
David Lyons and Bridie Carter played the leads. David Lyons portrayed Rebel as an average, cheerful young American guy who had just seen enough of the war, and decided to go AWOL.
Bridie Carter’s portrayal of Kathy was a delight. She portrayed Kathy as a modest, true blue, warm hearted, working class young Australian woman who had just been just getting on with her life, and finds her life forever complicated by Rebel’s arrival.
Travis McMahon nailed his part as Kathy’s shifty friend, Tiger. McMahon portrayed Tiger as a shadowy, devious, slick conman guy, who would when push comes to shove would always look after his own interests.
Robyn McLeavy was great as Kathy’s long-time friend, Joycie. Here was a ditzy, good time party girl complete with bubbly, inane laughter. David Jones played her equally inane, good-time sailor boyfriend, Bernie. Together they were quite a daggy team!
Jennifer Hagan played Kathy’s incredibly irritating landlord Mrs Palmer. Hagan gave a compelling portrait of the landlord from hell. Her Mrs Palmer was forever nosy and intrusive, aggressive, narrow minded, shifty, malicious and ready to pounce if the occasion demanded.
1965 NIDA graduate Helmut Bakaitis played Detective Browning. He looked and felt the part of typical, middle-aged, Detective who has been on the beat forever, with a very hard exterior but a good heart inside.
Tony Knight’s direction was clear and well paced, and successfully brought the quintessential feel to Herbert’s play. Knight’s creative team was strong. Peter Cooke’s expansive, plush set of Kathy’s flat, and Marcia Lidden’s costumes successfully recreated 1940’s Australia. Peter Walton lit the actors well, and Mike Smith’s soundtrack revisited some of the musical hits of the time.
This ‘No Names…No Pack Drill’ was a strong, entertaining production and one of my highlights of the year.