Review: A Drop Too Many
Picture: A Drop Too Many (Credit: Creative Futures Photography)
Created in response to the SEQ/Northern NSW floods and droughts, A Drop Too Many is a physical theatre work that that highlights community strength in the presence of disaster—reminding audiences of the equal perils of too much and too little water, where communities are ‘destroyed in the dry, drowned in the wet.’ The show focuses on the lived experience and stories of people affected by the Dry and the Wet, and told through movement, voice, clever visuals, and against the backdrop of a fantastic soundscape.
A Drop Too Many is a clever work that interweaves real stories of hardship and loss—including memories of frustrating drought, joyful dances in the returning rain, and the distressful experience of the tsunami of rising floods. Drawing on the Zen Zen Zo physical theatre philosophies and aesthetic, the show is at moments compelling, confronting, uplifting and optimistic. Congratulations to the co-creators and performers, Maxi Mossman (Director, Writer, Designer, Performer), Michelle Roberts (Performer, Devisor, Sound Designer), Malika Svory (Performer, Devisor), and Hailey Graham (Performer, Devisor). The team also noted special additional acknowledgement of the work of Bryce Delany (Producer, Photographer, Lighting Designer), and thanked Hailey Graham, Maxine Finlay, Allison Harris, Karen Huskisson ‘and a collection of QLD and NSW residents’ for their stories and inspiration.’
A Drop Too Many is an outstanding debut production; a great concept beautifully developed and movingly performed. The staging worked really well, with the use of the limited props and costuming and an excellent soundscape. The shaking of the towels/shawls, and the moments with the water pails were impactful and often quite moving—and I loved the use of newspapers when recalling the rising tide of horror, at first the drought and then the floods. I can see why a declamatory style was selected for some of the key messages in the introduction and scene setting, but the most poignant moments were when there was a sense of ‘real’ words being spoken—such as the genuine reality of the stories told by Graham and by Mossman. All four of the performers worked really well together, and each made memorable contributions to the show—from Graham’s joy at the rain, through to Mossman’s words and movements. Roberts was an equally compelling central performer, but it was Svory’s anticipation and reaction to the immersion in the water that will stay with me for a long time.
Picture: Maxi Mossman (Credit: Creative Futures Photography)
Picture: A Drop Too Many (Credit: Creative Futures Photography)
Picture: Michelle Roberts (Credit: Creative Futures Photography)
Picture: Hailey Graham (Credit: Creative Futures Photography).
The performance took place in the Melaleuca Wetlands which are part of the grounds of Cannon Hill Anglican College. Mossman’s program note refers to this as a special place, as the college ‘played a crucial role in my growth as an individual and a creative’ and promotion refers to audience immersion in a ‘natural bushland.’ As the show is performed after dark, which certainly helped us all to focus on the work and to enjoy the aesthetic and lighting, it’s perhaps a slight pity that audiences did not have the full experience of being immersed in the bushland. However, this is a work that should be seen by a wider audience. Mossman has created a memorable show that I hope will build on its 2023 Anywhere Festival premiere. I am sure that this new work would be equally well-received by audiences from rural and remote communities—whether during the day or in the evening, and in a variety of riverside and dry locations that might include bushland and even red dirt ‘stages.’
A Drop Too Many concludes with questions about ‘what choice do we have’, and the uplifting community responses that demonstrated humanity, generosity, resilience and teamwork—contrasting the prayers for help with the community response (‘You came’). I hope that the bigger questions as to how Australians live on a land that cycles through drought and flood might be discussed in any post-show debate, which might also make this a good production to take to Schools and Colleges.
Verdict: A fantastic debut production and a really great addition to the Anywhere Festival program. Here’s hoping this show is able to reach communities in flood- and drought-affected areas.
Picture: A Drop Too Many (Credit: Creative Futures Photography)
Audience tip: A Drop Too Many, Melaleuca Wetlands in the grounds of Cannon Hill Anglican College, QLD 4170 (9-12 May, 6:30pm). 50 minutes (no interval). Subject triggers include flood and drought references (I suggest suitable 12+). Tickets $25 ($20 concession). Walking distance from Cannon Hill Train Station. Car parking in the grounds of the College is signposted from Krupp Road. Seating available, but suggest bringing warm clothing/blankets, wear enclosed footwear, and consider using insect repellent.
The reviewer attended the 9 May 2023 performance (6:30pm)