The Approach is an riveting dramatic play about betrayal, love and female friendship.
Female friendships are never simple and that of a trio of women, including two sisters, is all the more complex.
The Approach, by award-winning Irish playwright Mark O’Rowe (Howie The Rookie, Terminus), enjoyed sell-out performances in Edinburgh and Dublin. The same is just as likely for the Sydney show directed by Deborah Jones, staring Linda Nicholls-Gidley, Lindsey Chapman and Sarah Jane Starr, playing at Flight Path Theatre in Marrickville.
Staging is simple, one bare table and two chairs, with spotlights on the women. The trio are the dramatic focus of this play.
The Approach is told through conversations over the years as the women catch-up, vent and moan about their lives, and reminisce about their shared past. But this isn’t just a play about women's gossip. This is an intelligent production, told in a circular structure so as to pepper the conversations with clues. Clues to the unsaid truths. Clues to who they are now. Clues to their true feelings for one another.
It’s a wonderful psychological play that subtly encourages viewers to explore the importance of friendships and viewers questioning: do the stories we tell eventually create a new truth?
The dialogue is sharp and raw. Vitriolic anger, equally expresses the characters depth and shallowness. We also see the result of unspoken words as the years go on and the awkwardness that develops as time lapses and their connections wane.
The women’s conversation builds questions for the audience to ponder. Ambiguities become clues, ultimately allowing the audience to determine the ending.
Whether you’re looking for a gripping entertainment or a thought-provoking drama, The Approach is the play to see. Four stars. Highly recommend.
The Approach is playing now at Marrickville’s Flight Path Theatre till the 2nd September.
flightpaththeatre.org/whats-on/the-approach
Photos by Abraham de Souza