Sydney Reviews

There is a deep connection between words and music. Both need a sense of rhythm to be truly effective. They can serve to convey meaning or be completely devoid of it. The examination of this relationship is the starting point for Eraritjaritjaka.

The show opens with the Mondriaan Quartet of two violins, a viola and a cello performing live on stage. Their music is at times discordant and bass heavy. It is seamlessly integrated with Willi Bop's sound design. So much so that it is hard to tell sometimes where the live playing stops and the sound design begins. After the first section of playing, Bop takes hold of the final note, slowly distorting it into glitchy clusters of sound.

The words arrive later, delivered by actor Andre Wilms. French with English surtitles. These are philosophical musings and meanderings starting off exploring the connection between words and music then moving on to man's relationship with the animal kingdom and ultimately his fellow man. It is a shame the surtitles aren't kept on the screen longer for the audience to contemplate.

The words belong to Nobel Prize winning Belgian writer Elias Canetti. These are extracts from his note books, his novel Auto-da-fe and his essays. Of special note is Cannetti's Crowds of Power which is a study of why large crowds respond to leaders, written as though the writer is somehow outside the human race looking in. Wilms portrays a similar kind of outsider in Eraritjaritjaka.

Eraritjaritjaka is the work of director Heiner Goebbels from Frankfurt Germany. He studied music and sociology in the 70s which are interestingly two of the key areas explored in the piece.

Eraritjaritjaka is an Aboriginal word which can be roughly translated to mean "longing". Wilms leads a solitary existence and is always experiencing some form of longing, at least on an intellectual level. His activities are mundane. He moves around his house, opening letters, making omelettes and watching TV. This drags on for too long and becomes tedious. Goebbels walks a tight rope between genius and pretentiousness and leans towards both sides.

Viewing this peace is an entirely cerebral experience and therefore a difficult and challenging one. Australian audiences are not used to work that is solely intellectual. We are used to placing an emotional investment in the story through being able to empathise with the characters.

The thing I like most about the Sydney Festival is its way of confronting us with different styles of theatre. Eraritjaritjaka is certainly one of these pieces and, while ticket prices are pretty steep, if you are the ponderous philosophical type there is plenty of interest here! The music is pretty damn good too.


2013 Sydney Festival
Eraritjaritjaka
Théâtre Vidy-Lausanne

Director and Composer Heiner Goebbels

Venue: Theatre Royal, MLC Centre
Dates: January 9 – 12, 2013
Tickets: $125 – $79
Bookings: www.sydneyfestival.org.au