The Season at Sarsaparilla

I knew what happened in the play week! It’s a nice change from last week! This week I read the Season at Sarsaparilla by Patrick White. I must admit that this play took me a little while to get into. I think this is definitely a play that is received better on stage than from reading. Although once I got my head around characters and jumping between houses, this was when I was able to understand and read more freely.

The play is set in a fictional town in the outer suburbs of Sydney called Sarsaparilla. Mildred Street to be precise, in the summer of 1961. The way that White creates the set is with three house interiors open on stage. Three different typically Australian families. Being set in the 1960’s the values and the household dynamics are definitely of the time. The male goes off to work, while to woman stays home, does the housework and prepares dinner for their husbands coming home. White creates three realities on stage, three different types of families. The story revolves around the street, each household has a story. I found it interesting that at the time the play is set, there is still a very British attitude about the characters. There is a scene in which a couple Nora and Ernie are fighting and are very upset, although they pull themselves together so that the neighbours don’t see their emotions. Ernie also has friend who comes to visit who is his friend, presumably from the war. The themes of war, and the mateship that is founded through the time is brought through the play also.

I also found it interesting that White chose to use miming throughout the play. Although there is a set of kitchen, with the stove and fridge, table and chairs, there is specific direction to mime. Perhaps this links in with the sub-title of the play ‘A Charade of Suburbia’. In the final scenes in the play, the post-office clerk, Roy, is speaking over the top of everybody’s actions. He becomes the narrator and also puts a neat and tidy finish to the play. Throughout the play Roy speaks about wanting to get away and to write a book. When he finally leaves at the end and as he’s narrating, it leaves you with a feeling that he wrote this story of these families and he was finished with this story to start another.

It was an interesting play, and like I said it’s definitely a play that benefit’s from being seen onstage. It also has strong themes of Australian culture and Australian life in the 1960’s which makes it a great play for our project.

Stage space is large for all the houses.

Julia!