Heather Mitchell as Cate McGregor. Photo: Philip Erbacher
Tour de force can be an overused expression in reviewing theatre but I cannot think of a better way to describe Heather Mitchell’s wonderful portrayal of Cate McGregor. Cate’s journey from Malcolm McGregor – cricketer, rugby player, Duntroon graduate, speechwriter and advocate of the Labor party – to living her ‘authentic life’ as the woman she always felt herself to be is remarkable in itself, and Mitchell’s performance is raw, funny, candid, astonishing – and enlightening.
Having lived as a man for the best part of five decades, Cate has a unique perspective to offer as she now navigates the world as a woman. Of several poignant insights, two spring to mind immediately: The first, her realisation that as a 60-something female, albeit an attractive and intelligent one, she was practically invisible to western society at large; and the second that what often passes for transphobia is just good old misogyny. But I am skipping ahead.
Heather Mitchell and Ashley Lyons. Photo: Philip Erbacher
Ninety per cent of the words Mitchell speaks are McGregor’s own, drawn from interviews and discussions with her friend Priscilla Jackman, who wrote and directs Still Point Turning. It is heartening to know that McGregor has been involved in each step of the production.
When we meet Cate on stage, she is talking to her anaesthetist; she is about to undergo the physical part of her transitioning. Will she wake up? Her fears are normal of course, but they also point up the courage of undergoing such a procedure and just how big a deal it is. Her story then comes to us through flashbacks: life as an ‘ordinary’ kid in Queensland, who’s introduced to cricket by a dad who dies when Malcolm is eight; his military career; his cricketing triumph; his involvement with the Labor party; his marriage and the anguish he feels at being such a source of grief to his wife. As Cate says, “I do the bloke thing really well.”
His recruitment into politics happened in 1985, the same year his first book on cricket was published and also the year he was first diagnosed as trans. It will be nearly 30 years before a psychiatrist confirms that diagnosis of “serious gender dysphoria” and the “utter despair”/nervous breakdown that propel Malcolm/Cate from thoughts of suicide to transitioning.
As McGregor, Mitchell is mesmerising, always feminine but with a great, gruff laugh. The ensemble cast is effective, especially Ashley Lyon as adult Malcolm and Nicholas Brown as Indian cricketer Rahul Dravid. Lighting, courtesy of Nick Schlieper, and set design by Michael Scott-Mitchell, contribute to a dramatic and interesting night at the theatre.
This is such a big story that one review cannot explore all of it. Better to see Still Point Turning and hear Cate’s experiences, because here is a story that shows how different and unique each one of us is, and how important it is to live one’s best authentic life, however difficult that might be.
Still Point Turning: The Catherine McGregor Story, Wharf 1, Sydney Theatre Company until May 26
