Company
Subscribe
X

Get the latest from Beat

Company

company.jpg

Two-time Green Room award nominee Simpson-Deeks actually turns 35 during the shows season, although luckily his actual birthday falls on one of his nights off. “The whole play takes place on the night of Robert’s surprise birthday so it’s a bit harrowing for me. It would be a bit much to do a performance on my actual birthday – the universe might implode on itself or something.

Company is largely about Rob, what’s going on in his head,” he continues. “He’s a sensitive character underneath and he’s open to taking action, to move forward in search of connection. He’s trying to figure out what he wants, if he does want marriage, and if so, why. He’s seeing three women when the play opens, he likes them all but none of them are ‘the one’. He’s a bit of an enigma but he’s also ‘everyman’, and he goes on a journey, a small journey about being able to move forward and take some action, it’s something we can all relate to.”

Simpson-Deeks is pretty cheerful about the parallels between Robert and himself, however, being more concerned about the two and a half week rehearsal period. “I’ve worked with the company before, and this is how they do things. Essentially you get really skilled performers to work with – it’s quite a race. It’s energising in a way; I have to make sure I have the stamina for opening night, so I will be eating well and won’t be drinking anything over the next few weeks. It’s financially difficult to produce musicals, and the rehearsal period reflects that. Watch This has been nominated for Green Room awards against the big commercial musicals so that bodes very well.”

He’s right; such a tight schedule clearly doesn’t hurt performances – Watch This garnered three Green Room awards for Assassins and eight nominations for Pacific Overture in 2014 with cast member Adrian Li Donni winning Best Supporting Actor. For their production of Company Kat Henry is directing, leading a cast of 14 including, alongside Simpson-Deeks, Sally Bourne and Gillian Cosgriff.

Watch This is having an impressive impact on the Melbourne theatre scene. “The company have a declared mission to produce Sondheim canon, so to speak,” says Simpson-Deeks. “Their premise is to produce accessible musical theatre in the Off-Broadway style, meaning intimate, compressed, and actor-driven performances. This production of Company is not about the spectacle, it’s about character and text.”

 

Company looks at the business of being married from the perspective of five heterosexual unions, with some unforgettable songs capturing the ambivalence of long term liaisons that ring true for anyone who’s been there. “Once you’re married you can’t be unmarried, even if you divorce,” notes Simpson-Deeks. “Fans of Sondheim will know that the composer is currently reworking Company to bring the focus on gay marriage; however, that script isn’t yet available for performance, so Watch This is putting on the one everyone knows and loves: it seems the fascination for stories of human beings searching for connection doesn’t wane.

“Essentially Company is about personal relationships, about expectations and a sense of entitlement, so none of the content is dated even though it’s 45-years-old,” Simpson-Deeks adds. “It’s a really interesting piece to look at – these are real characters in real situations, it comprises a world that’s still relevant, superficially it’s about the nature of marriage but it’s very complex under the surface in the way it looks at relationships.” What has he learnt about himself so far?  “Of course it’s made me think about all the same things. When you’re performing you become what you’re saying in the moment. The more questions you have about a text, the deeper you go into the text, thinking about things like courage and foolhardiness, making choices, things that apply to any kind of relationship; you open that up. The play is about being human, about relationships and romance; it’s an interesting journey. ”

How has he prepared for this role? “Research is one of my favourite steps in the journey,” he says. “I’m maniacally pulling information out of my own experience, personalising characters I know or thinking about situations in real life I’ve been in, and thinking about where all this is helpful.”

BY LIZA DEZFOULI