Venus In Fur:  seriously smart and very funny

Posted on 13 August, 2018

A seductive dance on The Street stage

Do you know where the word ‘masochist’ comes from? It’s named after Leopold von Sacher-Masoch, a 19th-century Austrian writer whose novel, Venus In Furs, explored the phenomenon of seeking pleasure through received pain.

Inspired by the novella, The Street Theatre’s production of Venus In Fur, directed by Caroline Stacey, is a story of desire, power and the agency of women in telling their stories. This two-person, 95-minute dark comedy plays out in real time and explores the relationship between a New York theatre playwright and the actress desperate to be cast in his new play.

The director, Thomas, is staging his adaptation of the 19th-century novella, where a man (Severin) is trying to convince a beautiful woman (Wanda) to sexually dominate him. Thomas is at the end of auditions and is frustrated—he can’t find the right person to play Wanda.

In a clap of thunder and lightning, actress Vanda appears in his studio, dishevelled and asking to read for him. As they circle the sumptuous velvet couch—the intensity growing between them as they play out the characters—the ending of this encounter seems a foregone conclusion.

And yet there’s more going on than Thomas thinks, and this is where the drama lies. Exactly who has the power? Who is the seducer and who is being seduced? Actors Joanna Richards and Craig Alexander let me join them for a rehearsal session, so I could get a sense for myself. Sitting on the velvet couch that evokes both casting couch and psychiatrist’s couch, we talked about the timeliness of this production.

Joanna and I last chatted when she was in Boys Will Be Boys, which debuted at The Street at the start of the #metoo movement. Now, she says, we’re meeting during #timesup, a rallying cry that slots right into the themes of Venus In Fur.

“Exploitation is hardly new, but now it’s a time of standing up and saying men can’t keep telling these stories about women’s exploitation and saying they asked for it.”

Craig tells me that in 2014 Venus in Fur was the most produced play in the world.

“Playwright David Ives is so aware of how stories shape societies, and here he was picking up on sentiments that have now come to public attention. He wasn’t prescient, he listened.”

This is the first two-hander play either has performed, and it is an intense experience.

“We have four weeks to build two complete worlds,” Joanna says. “It’s a play in a play so we’re both Vanda and Thomas, and Wanda and Severin. At any moment we’re one or the other and both have to be believable.”

I ask if they ever get confused about which part they’re playing in those moments and Joanna explains all choices have to be made before they step on stage.

“It’s like being in the Olympics—by the time it starts we’re operating on instinct, the starter’s pistol goes and we are racing. The momentum pulls you, there’s no time to think.”

For Craig, it’s about building a tension that the audience can feel.

“There is this incredible sense of intimacy with the audience. We are physically right up close at the edge of the stage. Joanna is there in various states of undress and in some very revealing costumes.

“The tension grows and there is no interval to let it break. We’re all in it together until the end.”

Sitting on the couch with Joanna and Craig, I lob all kinds of theories at them, trying to crack their enigmatic smiles. Is Vanda the actual Venus, come to enslave or punish Thomas? Is she a figment of his imagination? Is he a figment of hers?

They tell me that every audience member may have a different take on what they’re seeing. Joanna says she is looking forward to talking to audience members after the performance and hearing their thoughts.

Joanna offers a tantalising insight.

“Preparing for this role I realised that in our own fantasies we’re always the object of desire. We want the person we desire to want us more. So maybe that’s a clue…”

Play-acting, power and passion. Venus in Fur will surprise you with its thriller plot, twists and turns.

the essentials

What: Venus In Fur
Where: The Street Theatre, 15 Childers Street, Acton
When: 22 August to 2 September
Tickets: $29 to $45
Bookings: thestreet.org.au/shows/venus-fur-david-ives

Make a date with Venus in Fur

Enjoy an evening at the theatre with colleagues, friends and loved ones. Call The Street on 6247 1223 to discuss special prices for large group bookings.

Enjoy a meal in City West before the show. After the show, meet the director and cast and carry on the conversation in the foyer or around town.

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