Operation Boomerang

Yirra Yaakin’s fresh and charming new production of Operation Boomerang is a loveable family drama, with a beautiful connection to lineage and country. Well-acted and directed, this was a pleasure to watch.

Matt McVeigh's set beautifully creates a pleasant room in a ‘nice’ suburban nursing home (with gorgeous individualism in the Indigenous Print bedding), surrounded by a stunningly created artistic representation of red dirt ‘country’. 

Lit with sensitivity from a design by Karen Cook, the show features thoughtful sound design by Jarred Wall.

Dr Lynette Narkle sits at the centre of this play as Nana, a matriarch who has convinced her grandchildren, and separately her son, to break her out of the nursing home, and return her to country. Unbeknown to her family, she is intending to end her life. Believable, likeable and clever, this is a great central performance, that broaches very sensitive topics without getting maudlin

Grandkids, adult sister and brother are well played by Ebony McGuire and Owen Hasluck, with the former a wonderful voice of reason, and the latter providing some much-needed comic relief. Wimiya Woodley provides an impactful performance as Uncle, beautifully emoted, if a little hard to understand at times.

Bobby Henry completes the cast as the daughter, whose journey during the play is the biggest. A layered and thoughtful performance that was heartfelt and confusing.

A production that had a lovely feeling despite some heavy and important subject matter, this is another show that deserved larger audiences. A joy to watch. 

Kimberley Shaw

Photographer: Duncan Wright