The Rosenberg Sisters slash Phobia - Review

SmackBang Theatre Company’s first performance at Te Karanga Gallery on K Rd was a triumph for contemporary New Zealand theatre.

The Rosenberg Sisters by Michaelanne Forster tells the stories of three Jewish sisters living in post-war Wellington. Elsa (Lori Dungey) is the cynical eldest: a terminal mix of sarcasm, wit and alcoholism, “I’m already dying, why do I need a doctor?” Lotte, the youngest, is engaged to a American man, but Elsa doesn’t welcome the marriage “He’s a goy not a Jew”. Mim (Tracey McGuire) plays the diplomatic go-between.

Abbreviated to stage name, the Rose Sisters, the threesome perform through a group of singers (Carolyn Medland, Mandy Stark, Megan Shackell) also onstage. The actors gave a thoroughly professional performance and accurate timing on the singers behalf ensured that the scenes progressed seamlessly. A wonderful effort on Director, Rita Stone’s behalf, and excellent debut for SmackBang theatre.

Phobia by Mel Johnson followed as a short dialogue between two flatmates slash couple. Woman (Kura Forrester) and Man (Richard Lambeth) face the monotony of everyday life, living together, getting bored together. Man decides they should get in the freezer to escape boredom and come back when technology has progressed to bring them back from the dead. Woman, hesitant at first, becomes more accustomed to the idea – even calling her parents to say goodbye. But man, sulking, becomes feeble and undetermined.

The dialogue was executed brilliantly; just as I was starting to think that Mel Johnson was just scripting a whole bunch of post-modern existential wank, the play ended and I was left believing that life really was a “terminal disease”, that “nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent” and that Kim Hill really is god.

As the audience prepared to leave having been entertained by two great performances, we were introduced to “Singer of Songs”, Wayne Anderson, who took an impromptu song request (Delilah) from his repertoire of 800. Wayne Anderson captivated the audience for another 3 minutes and left us confident that SmackBang had more than deserved the $10 ($8 for students) we’d just spent attending.

SmackBang is a theatre company mash-up of students and industry professionals working together to promote and encourage Auckland’s locally made theatre. Performances occur every Thursday night at Te Karanga Gallery on K Rd.