With the Anywhere Festival ending for another year and the unexpected cancellation of a main-stage play, theatre lovers keen to support new, locally produced work should not miss Horizon by Playlab Theatre.
For over 50 years, Playlab Theatre has supported over two hundred playwrights in the development, production and publication of works that challenge perspectives of Australian culture. Horizon is one such work, commissioned by Playlab and written by Maxine Mellor. Horizon premiered in 2021 at the Brisbane Powerhouse’s Underground Theatre and in 2022 the script won an AWGIE Award and the David Williamson Prize.
Returning for a limited season with the original production team, the new cast features Ashlee Lollback as Sky and Julian Curtis as Cole, who people might recognise as the guy from the Bridgerton series of Uber Eats commercials all over social media.
Cole is heading home to the outback to visit his very ill father, and he’s brought his girlfriend Sky along for the ride. She’s desperate for a break from the corporate law world, and her phone is stored securely in the boot so she’s not tempted to check it. What starts as a light-hearted road trip soon takes a dark turn and the couple must decide whether the secrets of the past will stand in the way of a future together.
The production design was impressive with the entire play performed in and around an old Ford Falcon banger. The car windows were removed so the actors could easily slip out the front windscreen and intermittently perform stylised inner monologues on the roof. The car sat atop a revolving stage and rotated as the action unfolded, with lighting design by David Walters that included clever spots and strips inside the car. Two big screens projected an outback highway, with Nathan Sibthorpe’s video designs effectively conveying the open road sliding by as night fell. Sound design by Guy Webster completed the audio-visual experience with howling dingoes, chirping crickets and a dramatic score.
Lollback and Curtis gave fearless performances, never leaving the stage throughout the 90-minute play, and they hooked the audience from the first scene. Both had great comedic timing as well as dramatic chops, and under Ian Lawson’s direction, perfected Mellor’s naturalistic writing via the playful faux movie trailer re-enactments that they’d spontaneously burst into as a way of coping with their situation. They successfully conveyed their characters’ complexities and argued in the way real couples do. I empathised with both of them as two people just doing their best to survive.
Mellor said that Horizon was shaped throughout late 2018 and 2019, with many issues weaving their way into Cole and Sky’s worldviews, including left vs right politics, the nature of how debates are conducted with no room for shades of grey, national identity, the environment, the #metoo movement rewriting our perceptions of iconic figures in entertainment, abuse and power, and questions around redressing crimes of the past.
While education around consent has come a long way since Horizon was first written, historic sexual assault cases against high-profile figures are still very much a thing. Horizon raises many questions: should we be defined by the mistakes we made as teenagers? Are we destined to turn out like our parents despite our best efforts? Will the battle of the sexes ever end?
The Underground Theatre is an intimate space, so audiences are ensured an up close and personal experience without feeling too close to the action for comfort. Copies of the Horizon script are available for sale in the foyer, and there’s a lucky dip purchase option for random Playlab scripts. Playlab Theatre has delivered a compelling and entertaining work with excellent performances from its two leads that are worth making time to see.
Horizon is on at Underground Theatre, Brisbane Powerhouse until 10th August 2024
Sarah Skubala
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Sarah Skubala is a freelance writer and has lived in Highgate Hill for several years. Originally from Adelaide, Sarah has a background in library work and musical publicity. She co-executive produced the award winning short film Down To Earth and has written a comedy short screenplay. She is currently working on a web series and a novella. Sarah is a fixture in West End and can be found wherever there is good coffee and cheap books.