Dirty Birds by Black Swan State Theatre Company

Details: Written by: Greg Letts; Category: Arts & Culture; Published: 23 November 2023

Dirty-Birds-Black-Swan — Mandy and Hayley McElhinney, Dirty Birds, Black Swan State Theatre Company,
Photo Credit: Daniel J Grant

On a balmy Wednesday night my partner and I headed to the State Theatre Centre of WA to see Dirty Birds, a new Australian stage play from the McElhinney sisters (Hayley and Mandy). Described as a comedy that blurs the lines between truth and fiction, past and present, real and absurd, Dirty Birds is a little different from your average production, as the cardboard walls of the set indicate as you take your seat and peruse the stage.

I often like to avoid reading the program for a play before watching it, with the idea of getting as fresh a point of view about proceedings as possible. For Dirty Birds this caused me a little confusion at first, since the absurdist nature of the story doesn't lend itself to an immediate idea of what is going on. But with time and further watching the themes began to unfold.

Two sisters forced to leave home and face a hostile world, where even nature itself seems to be against them. As they dither about in their fragile dwelling which is falling apart, they are reluctant to face the reality of their situation. Instead, they resort to role-playing, ritual and stories and retreat into themselves, with only each other to rely on. Funnily enough, on a night where a few in the audience were wearing masks to shield ourself from a hostile virus, in a similar fashion the sisters don a series of personas as protection of their own true identities. How many others in the crowd watching go through a similar routine during their daily life?

In the end, when routine and make-believe can no longer protect them, the sisters must emerge and take their place in society. Will they be able to come to terms with their own flaws and failings before doing so? How can society accept them if they cannot accept themselves? Will they be torn apart or face life together?

Dirty Birds is a character story that flits and swoops between past and present, imagination and reality, much like the title's namesake. It's an intriguing 70 minutes of theatre backed up by Black Swan Theatre Company's usual excellent production values, and will definitely give you some food for thought.

Dirty Birds by Black Swan State Theatre Company is showing at the State Theatre Centre of WA until the 10th December.

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