By Tim Garratt
First published in 1992, Looking for Alibrandi was the debut novel of Australian writer and teacher Melina Marchetta. It has since been read by several generations locally and overseas (the novel has been published in 16 countries and translated into a dozen languages) and inspired an award-winning film adaptation (released in 2000) for which Marchetta wrote the screenplay.
A stage adaptation of Looking for Alibrandi was recently commissioned by Malthouse Theatre and co-presented by Malthouse and Belvoir. Following highly successful premiere seasons in Melbourne and Sydney, this adaptation has returned to the stage, with a national tour presented by South Australia’s Brink Productions.
Written by comedian and playwright Vidya Rajan, this adaptation is a largely faithful retelling of Marchetta’s story of a third-generation Italian teenager, Josie (Chanella Macri), as she completes Year 12 at a prestigious Sydney girls’ school. Unlike most of her privileged classmates, Josie had a modest upbringing, raised by her single mother, Christina (Lucia Mastrantone), and her nonna (Jennifer Vuletic). She attends St Martha’s on a scholarship and, despite not having had the same advantages as most of her peers, is one of the school’s brightest students. In fact, she’s on a path to studying law at Sydney University alongside her close friend, John (Ashton Malcolm). It’s a path she expects will allow her to shirk the outwardly obvious aspects of her Italian heritage that embarrass her, because she sees them as making her ‘the other’ at school (an environment with a predominantly white upper-middle class population). She also looks forward to being unshackled from the pressures and expectations of her elders.
But Josie doesn’t realise that her final year at St Martha’s will bring about far more than the ordinary challenges associated with senior secondary school studies. While she’ll continue to face racism from her classmates, curveballs will be thrown her way that force her to examine who she is, where she has come from, and what should (and does) matter most. Crucially, she’ll realise what having freedom to decide your future actually entails.
Written over 30 years ago, Marchetta’s novel has plenty to say to contemporary secondary students, and Rajan’s adaptation of the text successfully foregrounds these takeaways. A key difference between the novel and Rajan’s adaptation is the decision to move the story from 1992 to 1996 so that its events occur against the backdrop of the 1996 Australian Federal Election, which was characterised by divisive rhetoric about race, multiculturalism and immigration. It’s a meaningful update but not overstated in the script.
Director Stephen Nicolazzo’s staging is surprisingly intimate, with the various characters played by a cast of six. The show moves at a good pace and makes occasional use of musical tracks to underscore key moments. And when it comes to the production design, Kate Davis’s simple set has the family home as the consistent backdrop, yet this feels appropriate.
Given the intimacy of the production, the ideal space for this show may be a smaller space than the 760-seat auditorium in which it’s playing at this venue (that said, it still found a captive audience in this larger theatre on opening night).
Leading the cast, Macri is a feisty and initially self-assured Josie, who believably becomes less poised and immovable as events unfold. She’s both frustrating and sympathetic, authentically depicting a teenager on their journey of self-discovery. Alongside Macri, Mastrantone delivers a strong performance as Christina, who has herself had difficult territory to traverse throughout her life and has worked to shield her daughter from those personal struggles as much as possible. Mastrantone also provides much-needed moments of levity when she assumes the role of Josie’s best friend, Sera.
As Josie’s Nonna, Vuletic’s performance is a highlight of this production; hers is a character also continuing to struggle with her own identity and the ghosts of her past, including an explosive secret. She is the emotional centre of the play and an integral part of its success.
Completing the cast, Ashton Malcom, Riley Warner and Chris Asimos all convince in numerous supporting roles, including the men who come into Josie’s life.
Looking for Alibrandi is an enjoyable and evocative experience, which comes with some good guidance for younger attendees (it’s recommended for audiences 14 years and up). Whether you read Marchetta’s novel growing up or are unfamiliar with the source material, this production is worth the time of any Australian who knows (or will soon know) what it’s like to navigate the tough decisions in life.
Image: Matt Byrne
