Plain Bad Heroine Review by Phaedra Brown

This work is a queer, feminist retelling of the legend of Faust who, in the German folk tale, makes a deal with the devil to gain ultimate knowledge.

Plain Bad Heroine follows Faust on a journey that explores our fleeting mortality, an unquenchable thirst for knowledge, and what it means to not only dance with the devil but to become entwined with the damned.

Writer and director Leila Harris has brought together music, design and choreography to create a performance that is of another world. All the elements worked in harmony to create a deeply ancient, and mystical space, and the intimacy of this work made me feel like I could’ve been in a tavern deep in the forest, witnessing a band of players telling stories from a distant land.

The costume and stage design is witchy in the best way. Fabric adorns UNSW’s Studio One, draped across the floor and microphone stands. The costumes are layered with skirts, belts, vests and jewellery. The textile design, by Pearl Kam (who also performs in the show) included a fabric puppet-being, possibly a dragon, a bird, or some kind of spirit, that comes to life during the show, and is particularly clever in placing us in the mythical realm.

The music, written and composed by Samantha Bracken, Soren Goulding, Imogen Temple, alongside Harris, and Kam, and also performed by Eva Priestley, is truly exciting. The voices of all performers together are ethereal. Hauntingly beautiful harmony and dissonance carries us through joy, confusion, strife and hope. At one point it becomes very ritualistic with carnal screeches and barks. The music’s highs and lows make the work totally engrossing.

The choreography, created by Katie Harris, and performed by the whole cast, accompanied every song. It helped to give shape to the story that was unfolding and to hold the audience’s attention. At times I lost track of the relationship between movement and story, however the performers remained poised and totally immersed in the world they had created, and this made the show ever more enchanting.

Plain Bad Heroine, while telling a story, also builds a whole mythical world. The design, movement and sound complimented each other to bring forth a new legend and an ethereal landscape. The commitment that these seven multi-talented performers had to the world they had created was captivating.

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Phaedra Brown attended Plain Bad Heroine at Studio One UNSW on Wednesday 23 September.