Review: Informative, Inspiring and Interesting, STILL POINT TURNING: THE CATHERINE MCGREGOR STORY Presents An Insight Into The Famous Australian

Friday 27th April 2018, 8pm, Wharf 1 Theatre Walsh Bay

Presented with honesty and openness and a liberal dose of humour, Priscilla Jackman's new play STILL POINT TURNING: THE CATHERINE MCGREGOR STORY shares the intriguing story of the famous Australian transgender woman's life and journey to finding who she truly is. Following on from development during Sydney Theatre Company's 2016 ROUGH DRAFTS program, McGregor's life, as told to Jackman in a series of interviews, plays out with in a visually captivating expression led by Heather Mitchell as McGregor.

For those unfamiliar with her story, Catherine McGregor, assigned male at birth in 1956, has led an interesting life in the army, politics, journalism and cricket but was always challenged with the feeling that something wasn't right. The story commences in a Melbourne hospital in February 2017 as McGregor, portrayed on stage by Heather Mitchell, is contemplating her mortality and the dangers of the sex reassignment surgery before drawing back into McGregor's memories. Presented from McGregor's point of view, with frank expression and a liberal dose of humour, milestones along McGregor's journey from Toowoomba kid playing cricket to becoming a Lieutenant Colonel with the Australian Army, a cricket commentator and apolitical columnist are recalled with each stage being influenced by the underling feeling of incompleteness. Whilst having a colourful and varied career, the truth that she wasn't willing to accept until 2012 resulted in a life of alcohol and drugs to dull the depression that took over her life for a great period of time, affecting her career and her health. Whilst initially diagnosed as Transgender at the age of 29, it wasn't until McGregor was 55 when she had the courage to acknowledge it with a subsequent diagnoses of gender dysphoria received in 2012 confirming the 1985 diagnosis and leading to McGregor commencing the transition process and experiencing the anxiety of being accepted by her family, friends, colleagues and community as Catherine.

Michael Scott-Mitchell (Designer) has kept the black stage bare for the majority of the two hour performance with textured walls and a range of curtains able to be tracked in and around the stage. A circle of illuminated text cycles above the stage in the manner of sports stadiums, providing an easy ability to express the changing locations and times whilst also containing the majority of Mick Schlieper's lighting design, positioned to keep the stage below the halo as the primary focus for most of the work while the vast space of Wharf 1 disappears into darkness. Scott-Mitchell ensures that McGregor stands out in an elegant white pant suit and heels whilst the ensemble remain in military inspired uniform brown suits, stripping down to shirtsleeves and undershirts when taking on the characters that surround McGregor's story. Characters with a significant influence in McGregor's transition are presented, still with the uniform pants, but with semi transparent white shirts, indicating they are part of her acceptance of her true self.

Whilst Mitchell's presentation of the modern day Catherine McGregor, her younger self, are presented by Andrew Guy as a childhood Malcolm and Ashley Lyons as the grown up Malcom, with Lyons and Mitchell sharing much of the recount and exploration of McGregor's life. Nicholas Brown takes on the role of McGregor's idol, the eloquent and serene former Indian cricket captain Rahul Dravid and Georgina Symes takes on the role of Ayla Holdom, another prominent transgender woman with a military connection, currently serving as a helicopter pilot in the UK's National Police Air Service who became McGregor's friend and support. Chantelle Jamieson presents Dr Amar, the doctor about to conduct McGregor's surgery, whilst Guy represents the German doctor who treats her at the worst of her alcohol and drug abuse. Lyons and Symes also fill the roles of McGregor's parents.

Jackman has ensured that Catherine McGregor's story is presented with an honesty and openness without lecturing or overtly asking for sympathy but rather seeking to make an emotional connection with the audience who are taken on somewhat of a rollercoaster of emotion. Highly comic moments and the frankness of McGregor's opinions presented with a brilliant comic timing by Mitchell are countered with poignant stories and imagery such as the mirroring of the Mitchell and Guy grieving around the cricket bat, a memory of her father who passed when she was a child. Part first person recount and analysis of events, part dramatization, Jackman has incorporated some moving expressions through the physicality of the work and the mobile props and curtains and the use of Schlieper's lighting to give insight into the darker recesses of McGregor's mind. Mitchell ensures that McGregor is given a truth, presenting her spirit without trying to over imitate and commands the stage with ease, easily drawing the audience in to want to find out more. Lyon's portrayal of the pre-transition Malcolm captures the fact that Catherine felt she needed to present as masculine and strong to honour her father with a harder edge to his delivery than Mitchell whilst also showing the toll of being unable to accept who she was took on the younger McGregor.

Regardless of you have much understanding of body dysmorphia or an interest in cricket or politics, STILL POINT TURNING: THE CATHERINE MCGREGOR STORY is a must see piece of theatre that not only informs but also entertains as it connects with the audience and asks for humanity for everyone. Whilst this is just one story of one woman's path to discovering who she really is, it holds a relevance to everyone to not only have the courage to be true to themselves but also respect each other and treat each other with dignity, free from judgement.

STILL POINT TURNING: THE CATHERINE MCGREGOR STORY.

Wharf 1 Theatre, Walsh Bay

21 April - 26 May 2018

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