Ad Astra presents Joe Orton’s fast-paced and razor-sharp dark farce Loot, directed by Jennifer Flowers with assistant direction and production management by Liam Wallis.
Compulsive truth-teller Hal McLeavey (Jett Robson) and his lover Dennis (Liam Hartley), an undertaker, have robbed a bank and are preparing to go abroad with the money. Hal’s mother has died, and his distraught father is being comforted by the scheming nurse Fay (Fiona Kennedy). Mrs McLeavey’s coffin seems like the perfect solution for the young thieves to move the stolen money – but then, what should be done with her body?
As the bizarre circumstances continue to escalate, Fay is drawn into the bank robbery scheme, in addition to the plans she has already laid to make Mr McLeavey her eighth husband by the end of the fortnight. Into all of this comes Inspector Truscott (Steven Grives), disguised as a member of the water board, determined to apprehend the bank robbers and uncover any other criminal activity that might be happening in the house…
Written in 1966, Loot was heavily censored prior to its English premiere by the Lord Chamberlain, due to its critique of the church and the police, as well as its irreverent treatment of death and other taboo topics, including homosexuality. Loaded with dark humour and physical comedy – Lisa Hickey performs the role of Mrs McLeavey’s corpse – Loot is a commentary on what we truly value, as well as a send-up of the social attitudes of the time.
The play’s heightened sense of reality allows it to find humour in things that would otherwise be deeply disturbing, like the callous treatment of the corpse and Mrs McLeavey’s glass eye. Orton’s writing is stacked with macabre humour and clever quips that speed past with the play’s quick pace. Loot critiques ideas of morality, corruption, and justice, as well as questioning the integrity of the police force and poking fun at the Catholic tradition of confession as a cure-all for sins of any severity.
The actors were fully committed to their characters and did a fabulous job of balancing the play’s intensive physical comedy and absurd interactions without tipping over into melodrama or over-exaggeration. The cast was a well-oiled machine in their comedic timing and delivery; with such a fast rhythm and bizarre escalation, performed in such an intimate space, Loot required impressive skill, a light touch, and spot-on timing. The snappy back-and-forth between Grives’ Inspector Truscott and the three criminal characters was especially enjoyable, as he made impossible deductions and became caught in conversations of imperfect logic with the two thieves.
Production design by Bill Haycock transformed Ad Astra’s black box theatre into a stately English home and included a wide range of props, from the armfuls of stolen cash to elaborate floral arrangements intended for Mrs McLeavey’s funeral.
Scandalous for its time and provocative even now, Loot is a commentary on morality, hypocrisy, and institutional corruption that remains darkly funny and highly relevant. The dedicated cast of this Ad Astra production find a beautiful balance between the play’s biting critiques and its outrageous, many-layered comedy.
Loot will be performed at Ad Astra from 4 – 27 April 2024
For ticketing and further information, visit the Ad Astra website
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