September 23, 2011
Adelaide Theatre
BRIEF

That Face
By Polly Stenham
five.point.one
Bakehouse Theatre, 255 Angas Street, Adelaide
September 22. Wednesday to Saturday until October 8.
Tickets: $12 – $25. Bookings: www.bakehousetheatre.com
Or by phone on (08) 8227 0505.

UK playwright Polly Stenham was just nineteen when That Face premiered at London’s Royal Court in 2007 and it was a startling debut. Bright young Adelaide independents five.point.one have shown that its grim, sometimes macabrely comic take on middle class neglect plays vividly in Australian accents. With lucid, well-paced direction by Corey McMahon and Cassandra Backler’s artfully minimalist signature white set (probingly lit by Ben Flett) the strong cast explores the many facets of family dysfunction. Tamara Lee and Matt Crook as the neurotically enmeshed mother and son, falling deeper into desperate isolation, are highpoints in a compelling production. Difficult to countenance, That Face is well worth looking into.

Murray Bramwell

The Australian, September 25, 2011.