Many of us are having a rough trot in trying to keep our heads above water in this era of economic downturn with the realities of fighting for a job or a partner in a population of over qualified gorgeousness. It is for this reason you may find yourself asking, “where can I find the laughs?”
Look no further, we say at Sydney Scoop, than the Ensemble Theatre’s current production, Unqualified.
The brainchild of local actresses and writers, Genevieve Hegney and Catherine Moore, Unqualified is a riot of witty banter, hilarious role plays, funny voices and impersonations, as well as largess human propping that audiences of comedy improv nights, such as theatresports, would be familiar with. Janine Watson must have had fun directing Hegney and Moore in the often madcap scenes that are all sewn together in a one act play lasting 90 minutes with no interval. The ride is fast and furious at times as we watch the plot unfold.
The story line follows the improbable meeting of Joanne (Hegney) and Felicity (Moore), two women from vastly different walks of life, who literally run into each other at of all places, CentreLink, not uncommonly the butt of the average Aussie’s jokes.
A crazy series of events involving the men in blue, a busted nose and a security breach at CentreLink lead them to discover they share three unfortunate traits – the need for alternative employment, being unqualified, and the fact that they both gave up on their dreams for men. Queue in the bright idea of starting up a temp agency where not only are Jo and Felicity running the agency, they find themselves taking on the employment roles that come the agency’s way. Of course, this is where it gets truly funny. What could be more hilarious than watching the side-splitting outcomes when you throw two unqualified workers into an array of jobs such as wedding reception event staff, early childhood teachers, traffic controllers on a building site, and the piece de resistance, teaching at a high school.
Along the way between the laughs, a few deep and meaningful conversations occur between Joanne and Felicity. Themes of friendship, self-loathing, heartbreak, ageing, giving up on your dreams for other people, and coming to terms with not being such a likeable person are all thrown down on the floorboards for general consumption and analysis. It was very easy for me to relate to Joanne and her trials. The best comedy runs close to the bone and has a huge dash of reality. It was extremely the case forUnqualified. Go see it for the laughs and the soul searching. Far cheaper than therapy!
