By Ash Cottrell
It had been many, many years since I’d been to, The Butterfly Club. Last week marked the first time in a long time and it was great to be back. An eclectic, artistic, albeit kitsch coupling of trinkets and colours characterises the space. It all feels very intimate and very Melbourne. Two separate audiences were led into different performances come 7pm. Our audience were led down an intimidating flight of stairs that had me pondering just how robust the fire escape plan was.
It was opening night of an unapologetically feminist play boldly entitled, FEMME PLAY [ungrateful slut]. Admittedly the later part of the title had piqued my interest. Written by prolific feminist playwright, Judy Doubas and performed by four actors, June Collins, Gabby Llewelyn, Rosie Rodiadis and Ruth Katerelos, the piece ran for under an hour and explored the various pitfalls of gender inequity. The show was characterised by monologues, sparse dialogue and some reimagined musical numbers. All in all, it was a bit of fun.
The story followed two primary characters, Al and George, post-modern feminists grappling with the difficult task of navigating being a single woman in 2025. The content was considered and zeitgeist in nature while at the same time, consciously injecting some frivolity into the narrative journey of these characters.
Whilst I thought the play undeniably explored pertinent issues and mined the depths of what women experience daily, I felt the execution needed some development. It wasn’t the messaging I took issue with, as I completely agree with the sentiments. Having said that, I found it somewhat diatribe-esque without exploring an issue subtly through a plot-driven narrative and character development. Perhaps this is personal taste, but it did form a barrier between me and the material.
In saying that, what I did enjoy was the enthusiasm and sense of fun that the show brought to the stage. Pop music met karaoke-esque style of performance, culminating in a particularly joyful rendition of, Sisters are Doin’ it for themselves. A song that is now well and truly on my Spotify shuffle list. One thing is for sure – feminist is no longer a dirty word, and this play really celebrated that.
The art department approach was somewhat minimal but there were still pointed props and set dressing. I wonder if the play would have been more powerful had these elements been stripped back even further. I would also like to have seen more character development over a longer period, in fact, it was probably one of the shortest plays I have ever seen. I got to know these characters through their views on gender equality but that was about it.
Suffice to say, this piece was a bit of fun, while still attempting to explore a much needed and relevant discussion on the various and always conflicting ways in which we show up as women.
Image:Sarah Yeung
