Sex Object

Scott Wallace
21st Apr 2017

The worlds of art and porn - beauty and depravity - align in Sex Object, the latest play to grace the stage at Marrickville's Depot Theatre. In the hilarious and absurd play, one of humanity's basest urges gets a dressing down in a truthful and often uncomfortable way. 

The first thing the audience sees is Ben (Charlie Falkner, who also wrote the play) crying on a couch, surrounded by confrontational and explicit art. We soon learn that the art is that of Ben's girlfriend Ron's (Charlotte Davenport) recently deceased father, and they are in his house sorting through his sordid belongings. With the arrival of her theatrical brother Gustav (Andrew Hearle) and his fiancée Kate (Grace Victoria) - heretofore unbeknownst to his sensitive and spiritual sister - it becomes clear that there's more going on than just couples' problems. 

Falkner's writing shows that he knows exactly how much to give away to the audience in each scene to keep them hungry for more detail. Each time a question is, at least partially, answered, new ones crop up in enticing ways. In the same way, the story slowly builds detail into each character, allowing the cast to give sensitive and nuanced performances.

The small cast of four are all excellent, reacting and writhing in discomfort so that each scene feels organic and real. The down-to-earth Ben and Kate, both of them utterly hilarious, are the relatable foil to the high-flung ideals of the siblings. Devenport and Hearle dig into their very over-the-top roles with aplomb, and Victoria in particular delivers the laughs with effortlessness. 

Raised in a world eminently preoccupied with aesthetics, Ron and Gus see ugliness as the ultimate downfall. It's fascinating to see the ways in which two characters such as these relate to a world that's chaotic and unpredictable. They lose control at the same time as the less intellectual Ben and Kate gain it. In terms of narrative arcs and thematic unity, this is a very strong piece.

It's disappointing, then, that the play seems to end rather abruptly. It's as if the audience is denied a chance to see the story through to a neat and satisfying close. That's only a minor quibble, though, as Sex Object is absorbing from the get-go, thought-provoking, and above all funny. It's hard to find theatre as downright entertaining as this. 

Sex Object is on at The Depot Theatre until Saturday April 29th.