Written by Deborah Frances-White and directed by Kate Champion, Black Swan’s production of Never Have I Ever (also staged by Melbourne Theatre Company earlier in the year) is a nuanced examination of moral ambiguity and the hard work of meaningful empathy.
Completely set within a restaurant, the play opens with Jacq (Emily Rose Brennan) and Kas (Deep Sroa) preparing dinner for their imminent guests – old friends from uni who have a financial investment in this soon-to-be bankrupt restaurant. The opening dialogue between the couple is funny and intimate, providing contrast to the tense arrival of their friends, Tobin (Will O’Mahony) and Adaego (Ratidzo Mambo).
Seemingly friendly banter between the couples is infused with snide asides, setting the emotional tone from the outset, and the drunker everyone gets, the more the gloves come off. Real thoughts pour out with the wine, revealing cracks in the characters’ artifice as well as their friendships. The couples negotiate awkward power dynamics while discussing awkward power dynamics, in a semi-meta, quasi-allegorical display of butting heads.
Everyone is trapped within their own frame of reference, wrapped in unique layers of privilege, deprivation and personal perspective. When Kas tries (unsuccessfully) to redirect the increasing competitiveness towards a friendly game of Balderdash, the quarrelsome foursome settle on a drinking game – Never Have I Ever. As the game progresses, confronting truths are revealed – with life-changing consequences.
One indecent proposal and too many bottles of wine later, the personal and political are locked in a mutually-exclusive collision course. Hypocrisy, envy and the impossibility of settling the score guide the trajectory of these unravelling friendships through the rocky terrain of overdue accountability.
Brennan is outstanding as Jacq, whose gutsy bluntness collides with the smug arrogance of Tobin, perfectly portrayed by O’Mahony. Tobin, initially described by his wife Adaego as ‘woke in a good way’ pushes everyone’s buttons with his leftier-than-thou attitude.
Mambo encapsulates the captivating nature of Adaego, whose altruistic aims and larger-than-life personality are met with condescension and scepticism from her husband and friends respectively. Kas, brilliantly played by the understated Sroa, is the voice of reason in a sea of battling egos, but even he has something to hide.
Frances-White’s writing brings a sense of perspective to the complex subject matter, moving from egotistical pettiness to perspectival gratitude as unity triumphs over division. The importance of opting out of toxic tribalism is underlined explicitly and subtextually, leaving the audience with a satisfying sense of reflective transformation.
Bryan Woltjen’s evocative set design puts the audience in restaurant-mode before the play even begins. Astute attention to detail sets the scene (quite literally) from realistic chef-stations to the restaurant-esque flooring. The set includes expansive storefront windows and a door to the ‘street’ – serving to extend the fictional world while creating a sense of realism. A trapdoor in the stage floor leads to a wine cellar that extends along the front of the stage, creating space for break-out scenes in this bottle-episode style play.
Lucy Birkinshaw’s innovative lighting merges beautifully with Rachael Dease’s stand-out music and sound design throughout the entirety. Strobe-y montages (accompanied by late 90s/early 2000s tunes) cleverly signify the passing of time, while dramatic puffs of red-lit cooking steam double as cover for scene changes.
Never Have I Ever asks what it means to be authentically ethical. From the pain of a ‘nice guy’ who feels victimised whenever he doesn’t have the upper hand, to the innate adaptability that arises from overcoming structural challenge, these characters explore the ambiguous spaces in between the personal and political. Assumptions pertaining to race, sexuality and class are examined with relatable humour and underlying warmth, without shying away from uncomfortable realities.
Status, security and experience are more than just the topics of Tobin’s would-be TED Talk – they are the core concepts at the heart of this play, which explores macro-level power dynamics through micro-level drama. Solidarity, resistance against power, and empathy act as narrative counterweights to the self-indulgence, pretentiousness and hypocrisy of the characters’ flaws, creating a believable story with multiple layers of meaning.
Read: Theatre review: The Half-Life of Marie Curie, Ensemble Theatre
Underlined by razor-sharp wit and culturally relevant references, Never Have I Ever provides an intelligent and hilarious snapshot of a very specific zeitgeist. This play is recommended for nice guys, feminists and anybody fascinated by moral ambiguity.
Never Have I Ever by Deborah Frances-White
Heath Ledger Theatre, Perth
Director: Kate Champion
Assistant Director: Rachel McMurray
Set and Costume Designer: Bryan Woltjen
Lighting Designer: Lucy Birkinshaw
Composer and Sound Designer: Rachael Dease
Voice and Dialect Coach: Luzita Fereday
Stage Manager: Liam Murray
Assistant Stage Manager: Estelle Gomersall
Stage Manager Season: Kira Feeney
ThisGen Fellowship Mentee: Rachel Adams
Cast: Emily Rose Brennan, Ratidzo Mambo, Will O’Mahony, Deep Sroa
Tickets $30-$129
Never Have I Ever will be performed until 6 July 2025.
