Dear Readers,
Can you remember the last time you felt swimmingly fine? Relaxed, well, confident, certain, assured and like the world was your oyster?
That Time Everything Went Well and We Were Fine is a comedic play explores the rollercoaster of living with anxiety and its on now at the Bluestone Church Arts Centre until Saturday 16 November. Book your tickets
here.
Frankie De Clerq (Jennifer Piper) & Gerry Jones (Belinda Campbell) - photo by Jack Dixon-Gunn
It's a short play with a very long title which addresses the hard truths about anxiety and depression - where other theatre producers fear to tread - and should not be missed.
Written and performed by Jennifer Piper and Belinda Campbell, we enter the worlds of Frankie and Gerry, trying to have a great night out, despite their total overwhelm with anxiety.
Trying to avoid panic stations, Frankie is relieved when Gerry turns up. However, negotiating what they do next becomes a tumultuous and painstaking process - should they miss drinks, do dinner or ride a bike, or get a ride share or wait for another train? It's painful to watch two beautiful people never get their act together, as they are crippled with anxiety, and making even simple decisions can be very hard and result in chaos, confusion and feeling bad.
Sound familiar?
Anne Xiety (Jennifer Pipe) and Joy Fuller (Belinda Campbell) photo by Jack Dixon-Gunn
Meet the actors
here
What to do?
Create characters who can tell the story for us.
Directed by Kate Cameron and produced by
Wit Incorporated and Lansy Feng, there are a number of created characters that make us laugh and cry through their lived experience of anxiety.
Anne-Xiety (Jennifer Piper) has her own TV cooking show and Joy Fuller (Belinda Campbell) shows us how to make wonderful meals out of tears. Honor Ledge (Belinda Campbell) and Dee Pressor (Jennifer Piper) just want to end it all, and Sarah Tonin (Belinda Campbell) explains to us the facts about anxiety.
There is also a fantastic set and costume design by Chelsea Maron, which is well thought out and gives the performers plenty of options on stage. There's cabaret, puppetry, comedy, song and glamour as the show progresses and explores the many states of anxiety along with questions of identity.
Anxiety (Belinda Campbell) and Friend (Jennifer Piper) photo by Jack Dixon-Gunn
This is a fun show and it approaches the subject of anxiety and depression with sensitivity and humour, and has trigger warnings - but the subject is managed so very well - so take the family. The show gives insight and helps us empathise and understand what it is like for the many people in our lives who live from anxiety and depression everyday.
Honor Ledge (Belinda Campbell) & Dee Pressor (Jennifer Piper) - photo by Jack Dixon-Gunn
is a tribute to imperfection, nervousness and never having a decent night's sleep. It's also a great education about the reality of living with mental illness and the efforts people make to overcome the challenges.
Dean Isle (Jennifer Piper) photo by Jack Dixon-Gunn
A fabulous show in a lovely venue with popcorn and wine to boot! I look forward to seeing more work from
Wit Incorporated in the future.
