The Hero Leaves One Tooth

‘It’s really hard to be a good guy these days.’ So says one of the male friends in this new play from Ratcatch Theatre. And who could blame him? If having two fingers completely chewed off is part of the deal then I think I’ll give being ‘a good guy’ a pass.

Felix (Michael McStay) has just returned from a trip to Europe and plans to show slides to his partner Neeve (Kira-Che Heelan) and a small group of ex-university friends gathered uncomfortably at their Sydney flat. And he’s not making much of a show of it. Not only is the meal horrendously burnt in the oven, but also the guests have been forced to put their phones into a locked box so they can listen uninterruptedly to Felix’s commentary.

Present are female dentist Kadi (Cara Whitehouse) and Gem (Tom Rodgers), a ‘gender fluid’ friend who immediately skulls two glasses of wine; and Sasha (Claudia Shnier), a vibrantly forward woman, who has brought along a Russian filmmaker named Benito (Patricio Ibarra) who closely inspects the flat and everything in it. This group is unexpectedly completed by Mark (David Woodland), considerably older than the others, perhaps a lecturer, who wants to rekindle a former love match with Neeve.

Author Erica J. Brennan and director Cam Turnbull seem to want it all – a complex back story, contemporary relevance, shocking blood-soaked conclusion, plus musical interludes with hard-to-follow songs. A lot of this went over the heads of the audience who packed the first night. 

Mark seems to view his two missing, well-chewed fingers as ‘fair enough’ in his efforts to get back with Neeve, while the chewer (Sacha) goes into the night with her latest boyfriend extra-bloodied but unbowed. 

Which is not to say that the acting of the cast isn’t excellent. David Woodland and Kira-Che Heelan are first rate, as are Claudia Shnier, Cara Whitehouse and all the other happy campers at this weird gathering. 

Meg Anderson has designed a fine setting, lit well by Jasmin Borsovsky, between the two halves of the packed audience. The lack of first-night enthusiasm is a sign that they weren’t completely captured.

Frank Hatherley

Photographer: Clare Hawley