Review by Tim Garratt
Do our friends really know how we feel about them? What stays unsaid between us? And if the truth came out, would these friendships survive?
Those questions are front and centre in ART, a comedic piece by multi-award-winning French playwright Yasmina Reza. Its English language adaptation (by Christopher Hampton) is now 30 years old, but its focus on the uncomfortable realities of our friendships keeps it relevant. Under the direction of Lee Lewis, a new Australian production of ART opened Thursday evening at Sydney’s Roslyn Packer Theatre.
ART is about the decades-long friendship of three middle-aged men. There’s the conservative and assertive engineer, Marc (Richard Roxburgh), the pretentious dermatologist, Serge (Damon Herriman), and the endearingly flawed and somewhat high-strung Yvan (Toby Schmitz).
As the play opens, Serge has purchased an expensive artwork and invited Marc to his home to show off and celebrate the ‘masterpiece’. The only problem is that the avant-garde painting is something of an acquired taste; ostensibly, it’s a white canvas. Predictably, Marc doesn’t share Serge’s enthusiasm for his new asset, while Yvan’s polite response is closer to what Serge anticipated.
These casual judgements about a painting spark conversations that reveal long-hidden tensions among the three men – annoyances and resentments that have lingered beneath the surface and been deemed too offensive or hurtful to be vocalised. Unfortunately, none of the men can stop themselves from continuing to tug at those strings, and even more wounding remarks are made by each of them. With so much laid bare, will the trio ever be able to look at each other the same way again, or has the breach gone beyond what is salvageable?
The text is well crafted and, in the expert hands of a first-class, A-list cast, keeps the opening night audience laughing for much of the show. The lean 90-minute runtime is ample for the narrative and exposition of ART’s themes. The production retains Reza’s original 1990s Parisian setting, but the actors speak with their own accents.
As the charming and slightly affected Serge, Herriman is a standout, effortlessly drawing laughs from the play’s first moments. Always a force on Australian stages, Roxburgh impresses as the arrogant, traditional Marc who ultimately realises that he’s forged the ‘monster’ Serge has become. Playing the gormless but relatable Yvan, whose anxiety practically pours from him, Schmitz combines affability with everyman vulnerability. This is a powerhouse cast that has great chemistry under Lewis’s direction.
The production looks great on the Roslyn Packer stage, with sets and costumes by Charles Davis. Davis pays homage to the 1990s (when the work was conceived) and incorporates influences from 1950s fashion, creating a look that is visually engaging and thematically appropriate.
ART tries to ask (rather than answer) questions about the ‘art’ of friendship. The protocols of relationships allow for some honesty, but is real honesty conducive to a lasting one? This isn’t the most urgent play on Sydney stages this year, but it serves up plenty of laughs and moments for some reflection on the friendships we (possibly) value the most.
ART is playing at Sydney’s Roslyn Packer Theatre until 8 March, before seasons in Brisbane, Melbourne and Adelaide. For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.
