Sticks and stones may break your bones, but words can spit out venom so lethal that there is no antidote. There are not many works which can produce such poisonous sparring and emotional violence with the same acclaim and excellence as Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? The Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winner’s work is a gruelling feat of art, which director Sarah Goodes tackles with a fresh ferocity and with all the classical nuance and complexity that comes with Albee’s work.
What is the premise of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Martha (Kat Stewart) and George (David Whiteley) are a middle-aged couple who have spent their married life at New Carthage University where George works as an associate professor in the history department. The couple arrive home at two o’clock in the morning after attending a faculty party hosted by Martha’s father, who is also the University’s president. During what seems like a slight marital dispute after the party, Martha informs George that she has invited a younger couple who have recently joined the university to their house. As the argument begins to heat up, Nick (Harvey Zielinski) and Honey (Emily Goddard) arrive at the couple’s place just as Martha is cursing at George, foreshadowing the tumultuous night ahead.
The story uses the two couples’ relationships to explore ideas of truth and illusion. By using the privacy of a vicious domestic argument, the audience, like Nick and Honey, become a witness to a generally personal and closed space. The argument, which spans over three hours (with two intermissions), reflects the narrative time of the actual story to provide a genuine experience for the audience as we watch this argument spiral in real time, culminating in the performance's final ‘exorcism’ of illusion.
Who are the cast and crew of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
In her Sydney Theatre Company debut, Logie Award-winner Kat Stewart is Martha opposite David Whiteley’s George (the pair are also husband and wife in real life). The pair’s verbal sparring and tension is craftily paced with equal parts snap and sting. There is a poetry in the pair’s juxtaposing pains. Stewart feels like a fresh burn – raw, tender and visceral – while Whiteley lets the embers of his pain smoulder into a blaze.
Martha’s provocative personality is complemented with the complications of her past in a skilful act which stops short at making her unlikeable. In the flickers of authenticity, the audience bears witness to a wounded and self-destructive young girl who, as Martha puts it, is crying ‘deep inside, so no one can see me’. From a slight change in tone to moments of hesitation and pauses, Stewart lets through those moments of compassion so her cruelty becomes a defence and not a caricature.
In both character and casting, Whiteley matches and complements Stewart’s performance. Whiteley’s seamless portrayal from George’s apparent meekness to the man who pulls the final trigger is a masterclass in the exploration of emasculation and loss. Whiteley showcases how immense hatred and love can be held in not only the same space but in the same moment. The reverberations of such an emotional paradox can be felt by the audience throughout the large space of the Roslyn Packer Theatre.
Both Emily Goddard and Harvey Zielinski as Honey and Nick also provide strong performances. Goddard appears to be having the most fun: the ditzy portrayal of Honey with her buoyant physicality and comedic timing is executed well. However, at times the infantilisation comes across a little too strong, undermining the naturalism of the performance. Ambitious, strategic and slick, Zielinski embodies the role of Nick with the assurance of a wunderkind. The real ‘Nick’ is concealed well until Zielinski slowly lets his true self slip, heightening a queasy tension that finally exposes him.
Highlight of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
The tightly knit chemistry between cast members is an emotional rollercoaster packed with witty burns, an inferno of sexual tension and blazing violence. In the cacophony of betrayals, lies and deceit, it is the use of silence between cast members at the performance’s climax which makes for the most overwhelmingly deafening part of the performance. In an uncomfortably long moment of silence, the audience watches the reaction of each cast member as a pin-dropping quiet audience reconciles with both the grotesque night and its latest discovery.
A special mention must be made for Goodes’ sapphic twist performed by Goddard. Goddard’s sexuality becomes secondary commentary on illusions of sexuality during the 1950s. Goodes’ directorial choice enhances the scope of Albee’s work without significantly changing or reinterpreting the original play. This directorial interpretation is a testament to Goodes’ fantastic re-appropriation skills.
Who will like Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
For those seeking a classic literary production, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is a brilliant production. The performance’s intellectualism, coupled with its bruising emotional depth, will satisfy all fans of classical theatre. The production honours Albee’s work with a slight contemporary twist, leaving you both knocked-out and exhilarated.
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