Are we our bodies?
Beached tells the story of Arty, a shut in. He must lose weight. According to the stats, that’s true for at least half of us.
In the first world we die because we have too much. With all our privileges, this is what we choose.
Wonderfully written by Melissa Bubnic and cleverly directed by Shannon Murphy, this play is both funny and thought provoking.
There were two moments that hit me right in the gut, as it were.
One was when Arty’s mum, played with comic perfection and emotional power by Gia Carides, tells her very likable son (Blake Davis) that he doesn’t need to lose weight. His fat is him.
Of course, she’s enabling his problem.
But isn’t she right?
In a society where materialism rules, aren’t we just our bodies? Her ‘enabling’ is just the natural conclusion of the dominant world view.
Kate Mulvany as the social worker assigned to Art is magnificent. She doesn’t share Arty’s problem, but her life is utterly empty. Blake Davis as the TV producer also presents a hilarious portrait of profound shallowness.
And the other moment that hit me? Arty’s explanation of why he needed to eat – to fill that hole inside.
True of an entire society?
Veronica Kaye
Beached
at Griffin til 31 August
Theatre Red 