Compelling theatre for those lucky to see this magnificent production.
From the QTC site:
Powerful family saga spanning four generations, The Story of the Miracles at Cookie's Table is a moving testament to culture lived, lost and found, the strength of family, adapting and gathering together.
In the 1870's a girl is born under a tree - her birth tree - chosen to give her strength and wisdom. When the tree is cut down she follows it into the white man's world, working as a cook for the big house on the island. Her tree has become a kitchen table, one she will pass down through successive generations as a legacy - a way of carving out her family stories. Now, generations later, a young man and his mother fight for ownership of the table.
In the 1870's a girl is born under a tree - her birth tree - chosen to give her strength and wisdom. When the tree is cut down she follows it into the white man's world, working as a cook for the big house on the island. Her tree has become a kitchen table, one she will pass down through successive generations as a legacy - a way of carving out her family stories. Now, generations later, a young man and his mother fight for ownership of the table.
First produced by Griffin and Hothouse Theatre Company, this new production was directed by Leah Purcell and written by Wesley Enoch.
Video interviews (click on more)
"The Story of the Miracles at Cookie’s Table is original, riveting theatre. It’s easy to see why Wesley Enoch’s play won the 2005 Patrick White Playwrights Award, because it’s poetic, searing, and wildly funny. As the evening progresses and layer upon layer of lies are stripped away, the dark DNA of the piece is exposed. There’s little real joy in this family with no room for sentiment. Enoch’s idea of using a ‘birth tree’ (a tree that in indigenous culture is chosen to give strength and wisdom), that is cut down and made into a kitchen table, allows him to sweep through five generations of one family as the table is handed down. In an extraordinary powerful performance, Leah Purcell as the mother Annie is mesmerizing. At times raw and vulgar, and at others incredibly vulnerable, she commands the stage and the play with a brilliance that is totally honest. She is one of our finest actors. In contrast, Roxanne McDonald as the grandmother, Faith, lacked passion. There’s more to the role than she allowed us to see, but Nathan Ramsay as the 35-year-old son, Nathan, was a strong match for Purcell. Both Purcell and McDonald have been with the play since it was first produced by Griffin and Hothouse Theatre Companies in Sydney in 2007. Purcell’s direction is sure, with Brendan O’Brien’s haunting music and sound design adding to the atmosphere. The stolen generation and homosexuality are themes that Enoch explores, but it is underage rape and its consequences that lie at the core of the piece. Excellent, abrasive theatre. It should not be missed!"
"Cookie’s Table explores storytelling and its various connotations; storytelling as a living history, storytelling as in political spin, or simply storytelling for entertainment or inspiration. While the truth here is highly subjective, there was such honesty in the performances; they grounded the material in a very explicit, palpable way. Nathan Ramsay was tormented yet understated as the detached young man yearning for his history, while Roxanne McDonald brought a quiet humanity to Faith, the stubborn matriarch whose character is often disputed. However, the heart of the play lies within the mercurial Annie, played with exuberance and wicked timing by Leah Purcell. From the moment she appeared on stage she had the entire audience in the palm of her hand, leading them through old tales and vivid memories, entertaining them with a sharp tongue and the love of a good joke. She gave vibrancy, rhythm and power to the language of Enoch’s script, and had the crowd laughing, even cheering for the woman they instantly felt they knew. The audience roared at her hi-jinks, cried through her pain, stilling and quiet as they witnessed her growth and her homecoming."
Review SMH (Sydney version)
