Porphyria's Slumber

Devised and performed by Annabelle McMillan

Where: PACT Centre for emerging Artists 107 Railway Pde, Erskineville

When: Sept 21^st-29^th

Cost: $24/$18

www.sydneyfringe.com

Reviewed by Lana Hilton

I simply don’t know where to begin to describe what I witnessed whilst sitting on a milk crate, watching Porphyria’s Slumber, on Tuesday night.

A myriad of things happened; some were funny, some were frightening and most were very confusing.An assortment of props was used; garden pots, garden gloves, vegetables, seeds, chocolate cake and a peeler.Images were projected onto a screen; some were of people, some were of flowers blossoming and one was a man’s eye, looking at you, blinking.

The woman who tied it all together was dressed in flowing, white clothes and had three white flowers in her messy hair. She had dirt on her feet and big brown eyes. She was lost and determined and hopeful all at once. At one point she put on the gardening gloves and acted out a naughty little play and her hands had sex.

Porphyria’s Slumber is not a play – so the Directors Notes read - “it is an artist’s self-conscious response to a world laden with the burden of materialism”.

Porphyria’s Slumber is a poem written by Robert Browning who is referenced in the performance by the devisor and actor Annabelle McMillan, in video-blog form; she speaks of his effects on her through the five senses. The poem creates vivid images and tells the tale of a woman and a man, in love, and the man then strangles her with her own hair. Well, that’s what I read into it.

Despite not knowing what I was looking at and not being aware of the artist’s intentions; I really enjoyed the performance. It cleared my mind and was very entertaining. There was mime, slapstick comedy, R-rated puppetry, shadow puppetry, physical theatre and audience participation – and all in 45 minutes!

I would recommend reading the Notes before you watch the performance, to get a better idea of what it’s about. I now understand the ridiculousness of what I was watching was the intention and interpretation of the artist. She highlighted the hopelessness and deterioration of society in a very, very unique way.