THEATRE REVIEW: BOYS NIGHT IN
BOYS NIGHT IN - Written By Stephen Rowan Metro Arts Theatre - Season 5 - 22 August 2005
In the final performance for the 2005 Metro Arts Independents season, the Sons of Germaine Greer have delivered a singing and dancing all male cabaret called Boys Night In. Written by Stephen Rowan and co-directed by Linda Hassall and Shaun Charles, Boys Night In is a farcical insight into the private world of men, albeit hammed up for the stage. Colloquially charged and definitely not PC, Boys Night In is equal parts thought provoking and silly, somewhere between satire and social commentary. The opening act alone is worth the price of admission, a swan lake parody, the three men bathed in down light and dressed in jocks and socks alone, rising from an awkward slumber to dress for the night ahead. Two things become clear very early on; this is no Shakespeare, and the link to Germaine Greer is in name and name alone. The men farewell their missus’ early on and from there the testosterone fueled, alcohol assisted fun begins. Imagine your father and his two best mates, after a considerable drinking session, let loose on Triple M’s CD library and you are part way there. Throw in a roller skating dance choreographer and you’re even closer. Drinking games, female beauty products, pornography and a little latent homo-eroticism are all standard fare in this piece which has a subtly intelligent script that has a tendency to surprise you with it’s depth. For all of the repetitive banter about cars, women, sport and politics, Boys Night In does cover some surprisingly frank subject matter, giving the actors a chance to demonstrate their ability to move from burlesque humour to serious drama at the drop of a tinny. One particular deviation delves into the death of one of the boy’s mothers and is startlingly confronting. Adding to the outrageous dialogue and meandering plot is the musical aspect of the cabaret. A number of songs from the mythical Aussie pub-rock song book have been re-worked to punctuate the narrative, choreographed and sung live in their full atonal glory. Painstakingly re-lyricised to fit the show, eighties and nineties hits such as The Australian Crawl’s Boys Light Up make an appearance, with fully executed dance steps to boot. The rowdy response from the opening night audience is a good gauge as to their effect - each musical interlude is applauded, many people laughing well into the next act. The Sons Of Germaine Greer have produced another hilarious, if not offensive, addition to their Aussie larrikin series of works that began in 2001 with Three Blokes and Their Eskies. The performance of Boys Night In is an innovative and fun-filled theatrical experience, the few timing issues are completely forgivable, if not endearing. Although I’d recommend an adult only audience, Boys Night In hits with both men and women alike, friendly firing blows in the battle of the sexes. Truly, a production for the ‘noughties’ generation.
James Stafford
