Reviewed by Jodi Yeats

It is 2039 and a fish falls from the sky in Alice Springs, landing at the feet of Gabriel York (Stephen Lovatt) who is looking for something special to cook his estranged son for lunch.

It is a miracle – York hasn’t seen a fish since he was a boy. Neither has he seen his son Andrew (Simon London) since he took off when Andrew was a boy.

Reviewed by Jodi Yeats

It is 2039 and a fish falls from the sky in Alice Springs, landing at the feet of Gabriel York (Stephen Lovatt) who is looking for something special to cook his estranged son for lunch.

It is a miracle – York hasn’t seen a fish since he was a boy. Neither has he seen his son Andrew (Simon London) since he took off when Andrew was a boy.

Such behaviour is the norm for this family we learn as the story spans the generations from London in the 1950s to Australia in an apocalyptic future where it never stops raining.

Biblical references are apt in a play where the sins of the fathers are visited on the sons. There are also recurring motifs and sayings throughout the play, and the same actors playing different generations of the same family, as history repeats.

One chilling motif is a story about Saturn, the wandering planet, which is named after a god who ate his own son. Guilt and remorse abound.

Another theme is terrible family secrets, which, by not being revealed, are even more likely to be repeated.

Surprisingly uplifting

Despite this is a dark, brooding storyline, the play is so clever, intriguing and well produced, it is more like a satisfying, even uplifting, thriller than a depressing tale of dysfunctional relationships, which it is as well.

When the Rain Stops Falling is written by Andrew Bovell, who wrote Lantana, but far from being like a screenplay on a stage, this work is very theatrical. The same characters at different ages appear on stage at the same time, for instance. However, like Lantana, it is a wonderful, compelling, twisted piece of writing.

And that’s just the story

And that is simply the story. Silo Theatre’s interpretation, directed by Shane Bosher, is superb – the casting is perfect and the acting faultless.

Tandi Wright is a compelling 1950s wife and mother, and Jennifer Ludlam a convincing older version of the same character. Peter Elliot plays one of the few sympathetic characters, a big hearted outback farmer, but he is also a victim. Stephen Lovatt plays the flawed fathers to a tee. Simon London is a charming, if confused, son. Morgana O’Reilly plays an abandoned daughter with heart. Jude Gibson is fantastic as her older self, struggling with the past and Alzheimers.

The set is gorgeous with a long mural stretching like corrugated iron streaked with rain across the wall behind the stage. The stage itself is rent with large, symbolic cracks.

Does Silo Theatre go from strength to strength? When the Rain Stops Falling is simply a wonderful piece of theatre.

When the Rain Stops Falling
Silo Theatre
Written by Andrew Bovell (Lantana)
Directed by Shane Bosher
Design John Verryt, Elizabeth Whiting, Jeremy Fern and Tama Waipara

Herald Theatre
Until 3 July
Bookings 09 357 3355
 
Monday and Tuesday at 7pm, Wednesday to Saturday, 8pm, Saturday 26 June 2pm
Generation Y tickets for under 30s at $30