In 2014, when the artistic director of the Griffin Theatre Company,  Lee Lewis, had the opportunity to direct any play she wished, she reached back nearly 30 years to David Williamson’s comedic drama Emerald City.  The work continues to travel maddeningly well through time.  Using his own experience as a springboard, the Australian playwright examines the struggle between artistic passion and the desire for money and power.  Available to stream on the relatively-new-to-the US Australian Theatre Live, it is a treat for those who missed it during an early run produced by New York Theater Workshop.

The city in question is not the one Dorothy visited, but rather the glittery harbor-famed Sydney where in-demand screenwriter Colin (Mitchell Butel) has recently relocated his family from the more staid and traditional Melbourne.  He hopes the colorful energy of his new surroundings will be creatively renewing after his latest film disappointed at the box office.  But a new partnership with the well-connected vulgarian Mike (Ben Winspear) plays havoc with Colin’s priorities and reputation.  A secondary plot involving Colin’s wife of 18 years, Kate, (Lucy Bell) centers on book publishing and the question of who can tell a story, once-again relevant in the season of The Killers of the Flower Moon.  Colin’s agent, Elaine, (Jennifer Hagan), his bank manager, Malcolm, (Gareth Yuen) and Mike’s live-in girlfriend, Helen, (Kelly Paterniti) play pivotal roles in the unfolding of events.

There are two main reasons why the play still resonates.  While there has been an increase in the appetite for quality on screens big and small, there is still little profit to be made in arthouse projects: a dilemma for talent.  But there is also a timelessness to Williamson’s satiric conversation and smartly drawn characters.  His observational ability is on full display, especially when actors break the fourth wall and make us coconspirators.  Focus whips between them connecting with their audience and being in the moment, providing side-by-side viewpoints.  Butel is particularly skilled at humorously parroting the others.  Though it is the men who take up most of the 125 minute runtime with their posturing and machismo, the women with their deeper combination of beauty and brains are the ones behind the more surprising and memorable moments.  The piece begins to drag a bit towards the end, though that may be my post-pandemic attention span unaccustomed to two full acts.

Designer Ken Done supports the central conflict with his backdrop for Act I playfully drawn and the one for Act II dressed for business, shrouded in beige fabric.  A single couch and coffee table serve as all living rooms and a sole desk and sectional Everyman’s office.  This allows director Lewis to squeeze every millimeter from the tiny stage, including the area between staircases, and facilitates seamless handoffs between characters at a brisk pace.  Lighting designer Luiz Pampolha provides emphasis as does costumer designer Sophie Fletcher’s pops of color.

The Griffin was launched by actors and remains artisan-focused.  In his introduction to the digital version of Emerald City, Williamson makes clear that this is not a film but rather a first rate production viewed from the best seat in the house.  Indeed the camerawork is smooth and obviously well rehearsed, the sound is pristine, and the acting style genuinely theatrical.  Closed captioning is available as is a 10 second back button.  The stream costs $7.99 at https://stream.australiantheatre.live/ and is just one entry in a growing library developed with the intention of expanding access to Australian performing arts.

Tagged: Australian Theatre Live, Ben Winspear, Cathy Hammer, David Williamson, Gareth Yuen, Griffin Theatre Company, Jennifer Hagan, Kelly Paterniti, Ken Done, Lee Lewis, Lucy Bell, Luiz Pampolha, Mitchell Butel, Sophie Fletcher