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Media Review
Black & White – Australia’s Story - By Valerie Quo
The Progressive Theatre has continually shown many innovative and controversial productions. Their latest concoction, Andrew Bovell’s “Holy Day” has brewed up a storm amongst theatre goers and critics alike. Recently Valerie Quo caught up with the enigmatic Barry Masters, the director of, “Holy Day” and discovered why this new production of “Holy Day” has created such a storm.
I: I thought I’d start off by asking what themes your production of “Holy Day” deals with?
B: “Holy Day” uncovers our nation’s untold history and deals with a genocide that was nearly “swallowed up” by the history books. On a smaller scale, “Holy Day” also deals with Christianity, and reflects that cultural differences were primarily responsible for the violence of the past.
I: One thing that critics universally agree on is the marvelous way in which you use light as a motif throughout the production to represent many of the play’s themes. How and why do you use lighting in this way throughout this production?
B: I’ve always strongly believed that theatrical elements such as lighting have an important role to play in conveying meaning and immersing the audience in the play. In “Holy Day” I placed particular emphasis on lighting and used red washes throughout the play to reflect the violence that is awash within society. The red lighting reflects much of the red imagery of blood and the barren land that Bovell uses to symbolise the harshness of the Australian outback. Personally I feel that the use of a red wash at the play’s conclusion further emphasises the play’s bleakness – an aspect of the play this entire production has focused upon.
I: Personally I was rather shaken by the play’s ending. Why did you feel it was necessary to focus upon the bleak aspects of the play throughout the production and especially in the play’s conclusion?
B: I felt that Bovell pointedly created a bleak ending to the play. “Holy Day” does not deal with redemption or reconciliation, but is a reflection of injustice committed in our nations past, which to some extent is still being perpetuated today despite a commendable progress towards reconciliation. Therefore, it seemed fitting that the play close on a bleak note.
I: While we are discussing reconciliation, do you feel that “Holy Day”, by revealing and recognising our nation’s past, takes a step towards achieving reconciliation?
B: Definitely. I’ve always felt that the theatre has a powerful political role to play within society. Our intention with this production is not to create a metaphorical “guilt-vehicle” to be borne by white Australia but to recognise aspects of our past that have previously been shrouded due to the subjectivity of many historians. Hopefully, by recognising our past wrongs we can strive towards reconciliation with both ourselves and the Aboriginal people.
I: So Australia’s past isn’t as black and white as the historians would like us to think. Thanks for your time Barry!
B: Thank you!