It is always exciting to see the premiere of a new Australian play, and it is even better when the play is as well crafted as Melanie Tait’s is, and with Priscilla Jackman giving it such assured direction.
Tait’s play transports us to the world of Appleton, a small, sleepy country town, a modern day Hicksville.
It is coming up to the time of the annual Appleton show and preparations are well under way. The play starts with Bev and Barb in very earnest conversation. Valerie Bader is well cast as the tough, grumpy Committee head Bev Armstrong. In a delightfully dotty performance Merridy Eastman plays Committee Secretary Barb Ling.
Sharon Millerchip gives a lovely performance as Dr Penny Anderson, a woman who has been living in the ‘big smoke’ and has come back home to set up a local general practice. Penny hears about the Ladies Potato Race, one of the show highlights. The race is exactly what its title suggests – people racing a hundred metres with a large sack of potatoes on their backs.
Penny hears from previous race winner Nikki, played delightfully by Amber McMahon, that the prize money for the man who wins the race is $1,000 whilst for the woman who wins it is only $200.
Penny decides that this isn’t good enough- the prize money should be equal. She runs a fund me campaign to raise the $800 so that women will be able to get the same prize money. Penny doesn’t realise that with this action she creates a storm within the local community. She has forgotten that the locals don’t like change on any level!
Committee members Bev and Barb are unimpressed and very tardy with Penny when they hear about her campaign.
Sapidah Kian plays the good natured refugee artist Rania Hamid who has found a safe haven in Appleton and doesn’t want to create waves of any kind.
Jackman’s creative team, set designer Michael Scott-Mitchell– the set features a rusted old ute and a tiny revolve, lighting designer Karen Norris, costume designer Genevieve Graham, and composer sound designer Tegan Nicholls each play their part in making this a winning production.
It was kind of sad leaving sleepy old Appleton. Recommended, THE APPLETON LADIES’ POTATO RACE is playing the Ensemble Theatre until the end of April.