Type – Australian Historical Drama, Homosexuality, One-man-show
If you liked – Holding the Man, Angels in America, The Normal Heart
The Elocution of Benjamin Franklin: Featuring a virtuosic performance, this is nothing short of breathtaking
After its controversial and cause célèbre reception, Steve J. Spears’ one man-play The Elocution of Benjamin Franklin has returned to Sydney for its 50th anniversary. It’s a full circle moment to present the work at Belvoir’s downstairs theatre with it being the exact stage that the work premiered on in 1976, then known as Nimrod Downstairs. Performing the mammoth role, it also returns Simon Burke to the theatre where he made his professional stage debut in Kookaburra in 1974, at just 13 years old. “It’s quite a potent sort of serendipity to me, just personally,” Burke says.
Set in the early-70s, The Elocution of Benjamin Franklin follows the story of 56-year-old vocal pedagogue Robert O’Brien, and the life he leads behind the closed doors of his Double Bay home. Isabel Hudson‘s set transforms the 80-seat theatre into a retro 70s green-wallpapered living room. Set with a torn, brown vinyl upholstered armchair, a rotary telephone, a well-used upright piano stacked with a music paraphernalia and photos of himself in his heyday, as well as a statue of Shakespeare’s head.
Simon Burke bursts into the theatre wearing nothing but his smile; singing and dancing along to David Bowie’s ‘The Jean Genie’. He glams himself up (and puts some undies on) wearing knee high stockings with suspenders, a pink feather boa, cat-eye sunglasses and bright pink lippy. It’s a striking image. We’re seeing the secluded man that Robert is in the privacy of his own home, where it’s safe(ish) to be himself. It’s where he’s not putting on the performative mask of drab, dreary coloured men’s clothes and masculine mannerisms to be the public facing Mr O’Brien that societal norms demand he be.
As the story unfolds, he starts teaching a stammering and stuttering 12-year-old boy Benjamin, who turns out to have a great deal of potential for the stage. From sensible and respectable elocution teacher, to camp and comedic, from sharp witted and flamboyant, to persecuted and disturbed – the text demands extreme emotional and vocal flexibility and range from the actor. Burke transitions through the intense and demanding, volatile changes with smoothness and ease, anchoring the transition from satire to tragedy in a deeply human and vulnerable characterisation. As he brings the other unseen characters into the space, he masterfully brings in the audience too. The characters are so well developed – Burke creates rich and vivid images, particularly in his friendship with fellow transvestite Bruce, which takes place entirely over the phone.
BROCKMAN’s lighting transforms the setting using spot lit moments that flash on a crazed Burke in an otherwise blacked out stage, as well as quick changes from warm and homely, to sterile and cold white hues that clearly inform the changes in location. David Bergman’s dramatic and deeply uncomfortable sound design is filled with jarring, bursting soundscapes and eery and tense, low pitched discordant strings. The sound and lighting elements brilliantly capture and flesh out the dark, and ugly undertones that run concurrently throughout the script. They contextualise and reinforce the building discomfort the audience is feeling; knowing the student-teacher relationship is genuine and completely professional, but how easily it could be misconstrued and ruin him.
Burke’s performance is virtuosic, and nothing short of breathtaking. The script demands 90 minutes of unrelenting intensity and extreme range. Declan Greene‘s direction provides such an intimate theatre experience, sharing O’Brien’s inner dialogue, conversations and experiences in a way that leaves me feeling exhausted and stunned by the powerfully moving and fast paced experience.
Is The Elocution of Benjamin Franklin Worth Seeing in Sydney?
Premiering during a time when homosexuality was considered a mental illness and criminal activity, (still 7 years before homosexuality was decriminalised in NSW) the work fearlessly navigates the era-specific gay man’s experience, while exploring themes of bigotry and persecution, homophobia and social isolation. Greene notes that original performances were received largely as a raucous comedy, saying “it is both uncanny and tragic that The Elocution of Benjamin Franklin is now fifty years old and yet it understands this contemporary hysteria intimately.” It’s a testament to the intolerant and devastating reality that this story still holds great relevance today – the work successfully sits in that tension and forces you to look at the way the LGBTQIA+ community are treated in Australia today.
Tickets and Practical Info for The Elocution of Benjamin Franklin in Sydney 🎟️
Belvoir Downstairs
Until 29th March
Tickets: https://griffintheatre.com.au/whats-on/the-elocution-of-benjamin-franklin/
Director Declan Greene
Designer Isabel Hudson
Lighting Designer BROCKMAN
Composer & Sound Designer David Bergman
Community Engagement Strategist Bayley Turner
Vocal Coach Linda Nicholls-Gidley
Intimacy Coordinator Chloë Dallimore
Magic/Illusion Consultant Adam Mada
Producer Gus Murray
Stage Manager Isabella Kerdijk
With Simon Burke
