Perfect Arrangement (review)

Topher Payne has done a terrific job of meticulously researching the world of Perfect Arrangement – bringing the characters to life with whip cracking wit while slowly kneading out the anxious fear lurking underneath.

Step by step, moment by moment Payne allows the audience to peak under another layer of the cliché 1950s and see the very real harm that so many endured.

Patrick Kennedy is the absolute master of CAMP – perfectly equipped to bring this work to the stage. Kennedy’s eye for detail is second to none – much like John Waters, Kennedy juxtaposes each scene to create an effortlessly grounded and whimsically heightened world.

It is rare but impressive when a director displays such firm control over the style, pace and execution of a story but allows room for the ensemble to play and utterly devour the dialogue.

Brock Cramond, Huxley Forras, Lucinda Jurd, Dominique Purdue, Brooke Ryan, Jordan Thompson and Luke Visentin are an absolutely superb ensemble, completely committing to the aesthetic and leaning all the way into the CAMP.

Each performer navigates the complexities of the work with sublime technique and masterful timing. Cramond, Jurd and Ryan are the standouts of the show – hilariously inhabiting their characters as if they were written specifically for them and their talents.

Patrick Kennedy and Tom Bannerman create a set that speaks volumes – hidden doorways, offensively bright colour details and a familiarity that unsettles in its reality.

Once again, the small but mighty New Theatre, has showcased an array of Sydney’s creatives and proven why it is a vital and beloved institute. Perfect Arrangement is sure to be a must see during the Mardi Gras festival and it entirely deserves to be.