★★★
Adelaide Fringe. The Studio at Holden Street Theatres. 18 Feb 2022
Meet Me At Dawn is an unsettling piece of theatre, on a range of levels.
Two women, Helen and Robin, are washed up on an unknown shore after having survived the sinking of their rented pleasure boat. They are understandably bordering on panic and irrationality, but they pull themselves together quickly and start looking after themselves and tending to basic needs, and they start working through how they might get rescued.
They are drenched, cold, scared, and they are alone, or are they? They soon discover there is another person nearby, but they are not sure who it is or whether they should approach her. Is it safe? Something doesn’t seem quite right.
Playwright Zannie Harris often gives both characters convoluted dialogue to explore their predicament, the state of the relationship, and what the future may hold for them. In some ways their discussions are almost academic because of their complexity and the existential topics they discuss. At times it stretches believability that two people in such a terrible predicament would converse in the way that they do. Arguably, Harris has overworked and overwritten the dialogue and given the two actors (Sarah Bos and Wendy Bos) an almost impossible task of bridging the gap between a sound storyline and engaging the audience in a theatrically positive way. About forty minutes into the performance there is a significant moment in the plot where a number of things become clear, but it should have been written in much sooner.
The production elements are pleasing. The cast come on stage absolutely drenched, and we feel their cold and discomfort. A nice touch by director Nescha Jelk. The soundscape by Sascha Budimski is ominous and does the job in convincing you that all as not as it seems. Mark Oakley’s lighting is evocative and punctuates the action well.
Kym Clayton
When: 18 to 27 Feb
Where: Holden Street Theatres
Bookings: adelaidefringe.com.au
