Theatre is at its best when the audience forgets that they are watching a performance. This is precisely the case with KINDER. Part of Melbourne’s Fringe Festival, audience members can expect to see one of this year’s best shows just a stone’s throw away from its festival hub.
Ryan Stewart performs as Goody Prostate, a drag queen who has misread the details of their latest gig, not as a reading roast, but rather a storytime reading to children at a local library. With warnings there is going to be a protest, audience members witness Goody in real time trying to come up with a new act as they wrestle with ideas of where drag fits within the community, parenting and their own relationship with family.
Stewart completely disappears as Goody. Goody Prostate is a clown with a lot of heart, they had the entire audience wrapped around their finger and held them captive until their final bow. Stewart could juggle the innate humour of the show with its more educational moments without it becoming too preachy. An emotional moment never ended without a hilarious punchline that caught the audience off guard.
Stewart is a master at the craft of performance, handling a multitude of props and costume changes with ease. Even when certain technical difficulties were met, Stewart could take control and play it as if it were always part of the plan.
Goody’s German persona (accent and rhinestoned lederhosen included) may have initially appeared as a quirky addition but proved to have been a vehicle for the performances’ most surgical examination of book banning and censorship. Stewart brought Goody to life with the full spectrum of colour, in what was a hilarious and heartfelt performance.
The whole creative team should be celebrated for this hilarious and moving feat. They presented as a well-oiled machine; a subtle yet effective sound design by Jack Burmeister and a striking lighting design by Kyra Ryan elevated Stewart’s performance.
Incredible attention to detail has been taken with the set and costume transporting the audience into Goody’s basement hovel wonderland. Tiah Bullock’s direction and George Lazaris’ dramaturgy should be particularly commended, the storytelling was dynamic and flowed with energy. The audience was also treated to a choreographed lip-sync number by Mikey Halcrow.
What is so compelling about KINDER is its ability to express queer rage as an act of empathy against depriving the next generation of representation – a captivating examination of being queer amid our contemporary climate.
Ryan Stewart and the entire A Ry Presentation team have created a feast for the eyes and the heart. It is not to be missed!
KINDER
Festival Hub: Trades Hall – The Square, Corner Lygon and Victoria Streets, Carlton
Performance: Thursday 3 October 2024
Season continues to 6 October 2024
Information and Bookings: www.melbournefringe.com.au
Upstairs @ Floridia, Level 1/9 Wellington Street, Flemington
Performances: 13 & 20 October 2024
Information and Bookings: www.melbournefringe.com.au
Image: Ryan Stewart as Goody Prostrate in KINDER – photo by Alex Winner
Review: Nicholas Carr