Ding dong merrily: James Lugton and Claudia Elbourne in Snowflake. Photos: Prudence Upton
Snowflake gets off to a somewhat gentle start, with Andy (James Lugton) bemoaning things ain’t what they used to be – and dropping a few names (Terry Scott, Esther Rantzen) – that might be familiar to Ensemble audiences but are likely to cause some head-scratching in younger people. Which turns out to be obliquely relevant to the plot, really.
Andy has been planning – meticulously – for what he hopes will be a reconciliation with Maya, his 20-something daughter, who walked out of his life some years ago without explanation. He has chosen neutral ground – a church hall, suitably decorated by his good self – and as the play opens, he is torturing himself with how to greet Maya without being patronising or overly affectionate or doing anything that might cause her to take offence again. Lugton is a marvellous actor and conveys Andy’s nervous doubts and insecurities, while also making us laugh as he wanders off into mini diatribes about politics and videos, Christmas sweaters and books, and prevailing attitudes of the young, etc etc.
We soon learn that Andy is a widower. His wife died after an unexpected illness: here today, gone five months later. Maya was in her mid-teens when this happened. A lot to bear, for father/husband and daughter. We still don’t know why Maya has exorcised herself from Andy’s life. But he has heard reports of her in Oxford (the play is set in England, circa 2019) and has texted her again (and again), desperately hoping she will show up.
Lugton holds our attention with his story for a good 30 minutes until in bursts Natalie (Lilian Alejandra Valverde), who’s come to collect some plates and cutlery from the venue for another event. Andy is not pleased about this interruption, and makes no bones about it. He wants no third party present when/if Maya shows up.
Valverde’s Natalie is a delight to watch. Her energy and nuanced expressions tell us so much about her character. She is frank, disarming and yet warm, while quite ready to take on Andy’s patronising and snide remarks. And here we have it. Snowflake is Mike Bartlett’s take on Gen Z versus Oldies: who thinks what and why; who’s right and who’s wrong? Everything is up for dissection: Brexit, James Bond, Orwell, sexism. And Natalie drags out of Andy information as to what happened with Maya. Not too much, just a tease.
Andy is still on the defensive – (loved this line: ‘Being a while middle-aged male must make me a racist by default’) – and then, surprise (or not such a surprise), Maya (Claudia Elbourne) turns up. She’s even more emotionally closed in than Andy, and it’s up to Natalie to broker some middle ground.
Bartlett’s Snowflake, directed very ably by Jo Bradley, is the sort of play that will polarise audiences. It starts gently, but the tensions really ramp up. Who has the righteous moral ground here – Andy or Maya? This production played at the Old Fitz in 2024, to much younger audiences than the Ensemble usually attracts, so expect a difference in opinion betwixt the two.
Elbourne’s Maya says her father didn’t listen to her. It’s not giving too much away to say there must have been some truth in that, otherwise why would she have gone? The manner of her going is not really embellished. Parents are supposed to know everything; maybe they don’t? Teenagers, angst-ridden or not, can be thoughtlessly cruel. Andy and Maya were/are wrapped up in themselves. Both characters have suffered loss. Both are wounded, and have become withdrawn. Scared and scarred. Neither really understands the other. Snowflake provokes thought. As in life, there is no neat conclusion here, it’s messy and human – but not without hope. Communication is all, in families and in the wider world. And thankfully, there are Natalies out there.
At the Ensemble until 14 November.
Tickets: $46-$95, plus booking fee
https://www.ensemble.com.au
