Review: The Suburban Murder at Galatos Theatre

The cast get a chance to get their teeth into solid characters. Photo / Paul Watkins of REC Images

Produced by an enthusiastic collective of recent drama school graduates, The Suburban Murder testifies to the quality of theatre education in Auckland while highlighting the extent to which aspiring actors must rely on their own enterprise to generate employment.

The devised work is clearly actor-driven and the huge cast of 17 all get a chance to get their teeth into well-rounded characters who are kitted out with intricate back-stories and challenging emotional moments.

An equal-opportunity approach to stage time means the multiple threads of the storyline occasionally get tangled and some of the more promising dramatic conflict is swept aside to grant another actor a spell in the limelight.

However, the central idea is powerful and well suited to an ensemble production.

The discovery of a murdered teenager fractures the placid surface of a suburban cul-de-sac and the play offers a revealing glimpse of the sordid underbelly of Kiwi domesticity.

The most penetrating insights come from the younger characters, who hang out in a parallel universe that seldom connects with the prim and proper world of their parents.

The teenagers all display plenty of attitude and Toni Rowe is particularly impressive as she brings an easy naturalism to her portrayal of a seen-it-all high school student who is completely unfazed by discovering her father's internet porn.

The awkward tension between the generations is nicely encapsulated in the image of a Christian Mum and Dad earnestly trying to hold a dinner-table conversation with a daughter who has immersed herself in the impenetrable fog of her identity as a Goth.

The play also reverses some of the stereotypes of domestic drama, with Matt Baker giving a powerfully understated performance as a battered husband.

As speculation about identity of the killer drives the neighbourhood into a frenzy, some of the performances boil over with an intensity that undermines the naturalistic style of the piece. But the mayhem is effectively staged and delivers some genuinely chilling moments and a startlingly real fight scene.

The play concludes with some evocative hand-held video footage, and the minimalist stage design makes effective use of an intimate theatre space.

What: The Suburban Murder.
Where: Galatos Theatre, until 8 May.