Thursday, 16 January 2025

Feeling Afraid As If Something Terrible Is Going To Happen review

A 36 year old comedian walks onto a stage and tells us he's about to kill his boyfriend. A dark comedy centered on vulnerability, love and truth, Feeling Afraid As If Something Terrible Is Going To Happen is a flawless piece of theatre that finds the perfect balance between generating plenty of laughs and plenty of heart. 

Marcelo Dos Santos has written an engrossing script full of razor-sharp humour and candid observations on contemporary living, particularly as a gay man. The story moves at a swift pace, but it simultaneously allows time to have us care for The Comedian and to reflect on our own similar stories and experiences, regardless of what our gender or sexuality may be.

Samuel Barnett is exceptional as The Comedian. He is completely at ease with not only as our narrator but also as the supporting characters, including The American, his mother and his sexual partner Michael. When he speaks in The American's Californian accent, his entire physicality changes, where even his eyes appear more confident and self-assured. His rapid changing from one character to another and then back are smoothly executed and Barnett has his audience hanging off his every word from the moment he comes out. It's a remarkable job by Director Matthew Xia in bringing Dos Santos' words to life and eliciting such a human performance for The Comedian.

While Feeling Afraid... uses The Comedian's occupation as a tool to keep him from being honest with himself and others, it is something audiences can easily relate to and understand. We wear different masks for different people, places, and purposes, and sometimes it is to protect ourselves from getting hurt. We see this in the three versions of The Comedian, which are expertly depicted through Xia's direction and Elliot Grigg's incredibly effective lighting design.

Feeling Afraid As If Something Terrible Is Going To Happen is a powerful monologue that explores thoughts and feelings that all of us have felt, are feeling and will feel. It is filled with a great deal of quick wit and ingenious one-liners present, but this production is also a beautiful reminder that even when our head and heart are screaming that this is never going to work, joyful things can happen to us if we let them.

SHOW DETAILS

Venue:
Arts Centre Melbourne, 100 St Kilda Rd, Melbourne
Season: until 1 February | Tues - Thurs 7:00pm, Fri 6:00pm & 8:30pm, Sat 3:00pm & 7:00pm, Sun 5:00pm
Duration: 70 mins
Tickets: $69 Full | $60 Conc
Bookings: Arts Centre Melbourne

Image credit:
Mark Gambino

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