Saturday 19 December 2015

Nothing can come of nothing

I was thrilled to score tickets to the Sydney Theatre Company's production of King Lear this week. I had not studied Lear since high school (more than a few years ago) and I had forgotten so much that I essentially came to it fresh. This is a play about power, relationships between parent and child, parallels and divine justice.

The story is a tragic tale of an elderly King who decides to divide his kingdom among whichever of his three daughters expresses their love for him in the most pleasing way. His eldest two daughters, Goneril and Regan, gush glowingly of their father. His youngest, Cordelia, refuses saying 'nothing', and she is immediately disinherited. The eldest two, and their husbands, are awarded the kingdom. Having given away his power, Lear now finds himself shunned by his eldest daughters, and he descends into madness.

Acclaimed Australian director Neil Armfield AO has helmed this production, bringing together a star-studded cast of actors and putting them through their paces.

The stage is minimalist - starting with a cavernous black, shifting to a grey, before finishing in a blinding white stage - designed to reflect the changing phases of Lear's mind. Designer Richard Cousins has created a subtle set, devoid of props, in which all eyes are on the talent and the words. The storm scene in particular was marvellous, with wind and rain pouring on the stage for over thirty minutes.

As the curtain rises on an empty stage, Marilyn Monroe approaches a microphone and sings a sultry 'happy birthday'  to Lear before pulling off her wig to reveal herself the Fool in disguise. This marvellous opening provides a reason for the court to come together to celebrate the 80th birthday of the monarch.

We then meet Lear, played by the legendary Geoffrey Rush. Lear begins with an arrogance and rage that has come from his decades of ruling the kingdom, his frustration of having no son to be a natural heir, and his ego that requires undivided admiration and loyalty from all about him. As Lear descends into madness, Rush's skills as a mime come to the fore. His ability to transition - through his rubbery facial movements, mannerisms and voice - are compelling. It is a marvellous portrayal of a tyrant who becomes increasingly fragile and delusional.

Nevin's Fool is a curious creation. After the Monroe sequence, spoke with a broad Aussie accent and dressed like Sir Les Patterson.   Her wisecracks are punctuated by percussion from the band.

The daughters played by Helen Buday, Helen Thomson and Eryn Jean Norvill were uniformly excellent. It was also lovely to see Max Cullen as Gloucester. The standouts of the non-headliners were Jacek Koman (Kent), Mark Leonard Winter (Edgar) and Meyne Wyatt (Edmund) and I look forward to seeing their careers progress.

On the night I attended, there was a QnA with the cast after the show. This was an intriguing event, with Rush being generous with his answers. Nevin and others seemed to wish they were elsewhere, were curt in their answers, and left quickly when it was over. I appreciate that they had just spent an exhausting three hours on stage, but it did feel a little dismissive of the audience after the thrill of seeing the production.

It is a rare treat to see an actor of Rush's calibre up close and personal and I feel privileged for having witnessed his brilliant Lear portrayal. I have had the great pleasure of seeing several Sydney Theatre Company productions in the last year or so: Cate Blanchett and Richard Roxburgh in The Present, and Hugo Weaving in Macbeth. STC always produces interesting plays with incredible talent, wonderful set decoration, and artistic direction. I was also able to see Kevin Spacey in Richard III in 2011 which was a real treat. My reviews of these productions are also on this blog.

Tuesday 15 December 2015

Beauty and Depth

Last night in Sydney the Prime Minister, the Hon Malcolm Turnbull MP, announced the winners of the 2015 Prime Minister's Literary Awards. I am thrilled that Joan London won for best fiction for her magnificent The Golden Age.

The shortlist for the fiction prize was a tight contest with some well regarded authors rounding out the top five:

  • Peter Carey for Amnesia;
  • Elizabeth Harrower for In Certain Circles;
  • Rohan Wilson for To Name Those Lost; and,
  • Sonya Hartnett for Golden Boys.
I had expected it to be a tight race between The Golden Age and Golden Boys. London had missed out on this year's Stella Prize and Miles Franklin Award, so I am excited that she triumphed for this award.

When I reviewed this book earlier this year, I noted how Australian this book is with its depictions of the landscape, culture and language of Australia. 

The judges of this prize commented that it "is a grand narrative written on a most intimate and modest canvas" and "a novel of great beauty and depth", which captures the book beautifully. 

I should mention the other books that won at the PM's Literary Awards:

Poetry 
Geoffrey Legmann for Poems 1957-2013

Australian History (Joint winners)
Ross Coulthard for Charles Bean
David Horner for The Spy Catchers - The Official History of ASIO Vol 1


Non Fiction (Joint winners)
Marleen Bungey for John Olsen: An Artist's Life
Michael Wilding for Wild Bleak Bohemia

Young Adult Fiction
Claire Zorn for The Protected

Children's Fiction
David Metzenthen for One Minute's Silence 

I must admit to being disappointed that Helen Garner's gripping This House of Grief  was overlooked for the non-fiction prize. It should have won.

For more information on all the winners and shortlisted books, see the PM Literary Awards website.

Saturday 5 December 2015

End of 2015 Book Lists

As the year draws to a close, the "Best of 2015" lists begin to be published. Inevitably these lists contain very few books that I have actually read, so I enjoy being introduced to books and authors I may have overlooked. I particularly like lists that choose quirky, unusual titles that don't normally get much attention. So, before I compile my own list, let's look at what some of the others have to say...

The New York Times list features 100 notable books of fiction, non-fiction and poetry. Given that I am always reading, I would have thought that I would have instantly recognised the bulk of the titles with a nod of agreement that they are in fact notable. In turns out however that I have only read one title - the very notable One of Us: The Story of Anders Breivik and the Massacre in Norway by Asne Seierstad.

I  have started but not yet finished H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald, her memoir of raising a goshawk as she mourns the loss of her father. But there are quite a few titles that I am interested in, such as Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff which looks at marriage from the points of view of both husband and wife. Chigozie Obioma's The Fisherman also makes this list and is on my to be read pile.  I have also been hearing a lot of good things about A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara and I am keen to get hold of this novel.

The Guardian has invited a variety of writers to nominate their favourite books of the year. I always find it interesting to hear from writers I admire about what books they have enjoyed. I will take Julian Barnes' advice and read Colm Toibin's Nora Webster as I absolutely loved his previous novel Brooklyn (2009). Margaret Atwood recommend's My Life on the Road, a memoir by Gloria Steinem. I enjoyed Paula Hawkins debut novel The Girl on the Train, so when she recommends Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff I am keen to take a look.

Jeanette Winterson recommends Atwood's The Heart Goes Last, her latest dystopian novel. Laura Barnett suggests Anne Tyler's A Spool of Blue Thread which I have started and not yet finished. Edna O'Brien's Little Red Chairs gets a couple of mentions and, since I enjoyed her Down By the River (1996),  I may seek out her latest. A number of writers have recommended the works of Elena Ferrante and I might check her out in 2016.



The Guardian list also has a Part 2! From this list I appreciate Ali Smith's recommendation of Jeremy Gavron's A Woman on the Edge of Time, a memoir of his mother which I think would make an interesting counter point to Kate Grenville's One Life.  The other memoir of interest is Patti Smith's M Train. Damian Barr recommends Alan Cumming's memoir Not My Father's Son which I am currently reading. Naomi Alderman mentions one book I have actually read and enjoyed, Jon Ronson's So You've Been Publicly Shamed.



Slate's Book Review writers Laura Miller and Katy Waldman identified 10 books worth reading. Of Miller's list, The Fox and the Star by Coralie Bickford-Smith is one I think I would like. Jonathan Frazen's Purity is another novel I might get around to next year. Katy Waldman's list appeals more to me. Of the ones she has listed, I am attracted to Groff's Fates and Furies, Macdonald's H is for Hawk, Yanigihara's A Little Life, Ferrante's The Story of the Lost Child, and Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates.



Time magazine names 10 works of fiction including Louis de Bernieres' The Dust the Falls from DreamsUndermajordomo Minor by Patrick DeWitt, A God in Ruins by Kate Atkinson, as well as the novels of Groff, Ferrante and others. Time's non-fiction list includes The Witches by Stacy Schiff, Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates, Marilynne Robinson's The Giveness of Things, and Macdonald's H is for Hawk.


The biggest list I could find was from Canada's National Post, which lists 99 best fiction and non-fiction books of 2015. Despite the length of this list, the only book that I have read is Jon Ronson's So You've Been Publicly Shamed (#29). This tells me that the awesome Australian authors I have read this year need more exposure overseas as certainly authors like Joan London and Emily Bitto are worth reading!  However this list provides plenty of other titles to be added to my "to be read" pile, including:
  • Hanyi Yanigihara's A Little Life (#98),
  • At the Water's Edge by Sara Gruen (#90), 
  • Undermajordomo Minor by Patrick DeWitt (#87),
  • Margaret Atwood's The Heart Goes Last (#82), 
  • Miranda July's The First Bad Man (#77)
  • The Cartel by Don Winslow (#73)
  • Gut by Guilia Enders (#61)
  • Spinster: Making a Life of One's Own by Kate Bolick (#57)
  • H is for Hawk, Helen Macdonald (#27)
  • Submission by Michel Houellebecq (#21)
  • Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates (#1)


Newsweek published a list of the best and worst books of the year. The article is a bit stupid, with categories like most overrated, worst cover, most stupefyingly boring work of history, least essential celebrity biography and the like. Amongst the nonsense is some worthwhile content. The best books include Hanya Yanigihara's A Little Life, TC Boyle's The Harder They Come, and history of the Nazi regime KL by Nikolaus Wachsmann.

Buzzfeed has chosen 24 works of fiction for their "Best of" list. I have not read any on this list, but in addition to Groff's Fates and Furies and Yanagihara's A Little Life, the books on this list that interest me are The Story of the Lost Child by Elena Ferrante and Undermajordomo Minor by Patrick DeWitt.


I have yet to see any Australian publications list their "best of...." for 2015, but I suspect there may be some titles on those lists that I have read. The cumulative effect of all of these lists leads me to prioritise some reading for next year and acquire some new books by Yanagihara, Ferrante, Coates and other authors I have not previously read.