Watching the news it's difficult not to be consumed by an ever-present level of anxiety about the state of the world as it suffers from innumerable economic, political and environmental problems. Though it feels like the planet is on the brink of catastrophe, no metaphors for impending disaster are necessary when the ongoing bushfire crisis in Australia means the world is literally burning up around the people who live there. Melbourne writer Claire Thomas has brilliantly dramatised this in her novel “The Performance” where three women from different generations watch a performance of Samuel Beckett's 'Happy Days' while a bushfire increases in ferocity not far from the theatre. The narrative revolves between the perspectives of professor Margot, theatre usher Summer and philanthropist Ivy as they watch the play and contemplate the past. Though we get snippets of the performance which is occurring and their reactions to it, what's so engaging is how Thomas captures the real experience of being in the theatre. Of course, this novel takes on an added poignancy and even more meaning reading it now that the global pandemic has caused most theatres to shut over the past year.
Most of the time the audience is focusing on everything except the play whether it be the self-consciousness which comes from coughing in a quiet theatre, the snores of a nearby audience member or the fleeting thoughts which flash through their minds. This gives a wonderful humour and relatable quality to the story as well as grounding the reader in these characters' moment to moment experiences over the course of the play. It also highlights how we ourselves perform whenever we're in public or interacting with other people whether that be following the conventions of social interaction or making sure we're projecting the correct political values. As the fretful character of Summer who is a 20-something biracial woman in a lesbian relationship reflects: “Performing in the right way each day is exhausting her.”
In the play 'Happy Days' a cheerful woman describes her daily routines and narrates her thoughts while gradually being buried in a mound and this is the perfect vehicle through which to compare these women's experiences. They are each dealing with their own personal crisis while also being aware of the larger environmental threat occurring outside the theatre, yet they are most often preoccupied by what's happening in the moment. It's observed how “The earth is deader and harsher now. We humans, all of us, are stuck on a dead planet with extremes that are more extreme. We humans, all of us, have to distract ourselves with denial and busy business.” Since these women's stories are refracted through the play they're watching the novel makes an artful and moving statement about our impending mortality and how these swirling anxieties give the sensation that we're all steadily being buried alive.
While “The Performance” poignantly expresses this existential threat, the book is also wonderfully playful and oddly comforting as I became increasingly involved in these unique women's compelling stories and their relationships to each other. I was also so impressed with how Thomas cleverly structures the novel as its story neatly takes place over the course of the play and when the intermission occurs the text switches to a dramatic script where the women mingle in the lobby. There's a pleasurable irony to how the only interaction which takes place between the characters is presented like a play at the only time they're not actually watching the play. There's also a quiet beauty to how the author shows that (though we can often get lost in apprehensive mindsets) small moments of kindness and human interaction can make a world of difference: “There have been times in Ivy's life when a single warm sentence from another person has made the difference between wanting to die and not wanting to die that day.” Following these women's affecting moments of connection and disconnection is riveting experience. I'd highly recommend this excellent novel to anyone who is a fan of “Ducks, Newburyport” or “Weather” by Jenny Offill.
