Flinders University Performing Arts Society. Holden Street Theatres. 9 Jul 2025
The numeric significance attached to milestone birthdays seem as fluid as gender identities—there’s no certainty that the numeric denotation corresponds with anything in particular. Rites of passage once attached to such numbers seem to have blended, or have they?
Jesse Chugg has written and directed a clever theatrical exploration of the zeitgeist of teen-dom here and now. Of course, such spirit will likely change with the generation, but Mary’s 18th – a play about a party effectively captures all things “same as it ever was” as well as those that aren’t, when it comes to teens morphing into young adulthood.
Prior to commenting further, I do need to get something out of the way. I’m not a fan of shows starting late. However, if reasonable explanation is given, such can be forgiven. I’m sure I’m not alone here. But twenty minutes with no explanation? Perhaps the fact Ensemble Swing, Jazmyn Stevens, was announced as playing the title role had something to do with it. There. Whinge over. Stevens did a magnificent job!
Director/Playwright notes offer great insight into the creative process behind Mary’s 18th. A first draft completed only months after Chugg’s 18th birthday—she is now, I think 22—was read by a group of actors aged 14-18 at Chris Iley and Simone Avramidis’s wonderful Goodwood Theatres as precursor to further development.
“The 18year old characters were read by real 18-year-olds, the 16-year-olds the same.” While appreciating this early work was flawed, Chugg recognized “something about it, something raw, that young people connected with.”
And this is where the works’ strength lies. No, many of the issues aren’t new. Parties during the mid-70s (my mid-teens) were riddled with various substances, too much alcohol, sexual tension, matters of gender (yes, LGBTQIA+ existed but wasn’t as publicly acknowledged,) relationship dramas and heartache. However, Chugg’s writing is so wonderfully honest that we are afforded great insight into how these things are being dealt with now.
Mary has few friends. Then along comes Malcolm (Noah Montgomery) who Mary met after school, under somewhat fraught conditions suggested and revisited during the narrative by the creation of a tree by the cast. Malcolm is a sensitive, articulate soul adrift in school culture that, let’s face it, remains tough for young men like him. Mary, alone and all too frequently victimized, reaches out, and a friendship develops to the point where Malcolm and a few others are invited to Mary’s 18th. Penelope, Malcolm’s precocious sixteen-year-old sister, invites herself and proves to be something of a catalyst for the party getting out of hand! Not an unreasonable premise! There’s tension between Penny’s new boyfriend Corey (Brandon Calmiano), a sulky sixteen-year-old perhaps “punching above his weight,” and nineteen-year-old Dylan (Dylan Chomel), who, it turns out, has his own issues with the girl he ‘likes,’ Abigail (Eva Wilde). Hockey girls, Bennett (Ash Wood), Kacie (Kate Wooding), fraught with relationship undercurrents, and Jamie (Rachelle Launer) arrive, with the latter immediately “on the same page, in the same book” as the immensely likeable, irrepressible Declan (Jalen Berry).
Kudos to Stevens and Montgomery for their great portrayal of, as playwright Jesse Chugg puts it, “…two characters only shortly acquainted…tether to each other as the world tries to tear them apart.” Similarly, Kameron and Chomel play that forbidden, uncomfortable space between an underage girl and hormone charged young man. Wilde and Chomel are commendably strong in an emotionally charged scene.
Chugg’s script cleverly interweaves strands of comedy into the often dark fabric of the play’s themes: Winnie and Melanie’s account of how an injury was sustained in the mosh is hilarious, while Declan and Jaime’s relationship and Mary’s character arc make for some great comedic moments.
I was impressed by how effectively this largely inexperienced cast filled numerous roles as the party spiralled into that “who are these people?” zone. Great work.
The driving ‘tonally ferocious’ score by self-proclaimed queen of the Adelaide music scene, Will Everest underscored and punctuated the action very effectively and lent itself very well to the ambiance of a party spiralling into that dreaded place where no one is even thinking of the fallout when the parents come home.
No-one is credited with set design which is a shame because the simple use of a couch, bathtub, toilet, and small dining table and chairs, cleverly captures the vibe of house party degenerating into a house-wrecking party. However, occasionally the non-linear narrative structure proved a little cumbersome when it came to set changes.
Josh Manoa’s lighting works well, Oona Stephen’s props serve effectively, and Jules Moylan and Magnus Carpenter’s costume designs work a treat!
Where Mary’s 18th – a play about a party is not slick, it is truthful. Where it lacks a little polish, it is passionately raw. And where, occasionally, actors fall into call and response verbal table tennis—"you say a line, then I say mine”—the writing is crisp enough to make up for it.
If you’re looking for insight into contemporary late teen life, or you’re brave enough to recognise and reconnect with your own teen experience, or you want to enjoy “a brilliant group of energetic performers…debut a piece with casting so true to its source…”, Mary’s 18th – a play about a party is well worth it!
John Doherty
When: 9 to 12 Jul
Where: Holden Street Theatres
Bookings: Closed
