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Paul Gilchrist's Atlantis

Sydney Fringe Festival | Sydney

directed by Kit Bennett

A meaningful existence can only ever be understood from a position of subjective experience. In Paul Gilchrist’s Atlantis, things may contain inherent value. However, it is up to us to bring interpretation to them, and we have a choice in how we read the world and how we immerse ourselves in the inevitable living of it. We all rely on tall tales to get us through each day and night, calling them mythologies, religion, science or mathematics, for it is intrinsically human to want to make sense of things. Our consciousness must be shaped, but what form it may take is subject to the mind’s plasticity, and in Atlanits, Gilchrist demonstrates a kind of self-determining fate that results from the stories we create for ourselves.

Of course, the play’s events can only happen in a place like Australia where a vast majority of us are rich and free. It is Gilchrist’s point, to make the best of our privilege. We are in a position to dream big and to disregard cultural restrictions and social fears, so that we can have better lives and do good for the world, in ways that are perhaps original and trailblazing. If we followed every rule, our evolution would never take momentous leaps forward. Anomalous advancements require people who dare be radical; whether Mahatma Gandhi or Elizabeth I, it is always the maverick who establishes a legacy.

Atlanits is a soulful work, full of spirit, nevertheless with its feet planted firmly on the ground. Its words take hold of our imagination and argue convincingly for perspectives that are only optimistic and inspiring. Actor Antony Talia does a splendid job of helping us navigate between reality and idealism, with his remarkably engaging presence and an impressive commitment to authenticity. There's excellent humour written into early sections of the play, unfortunately  they are lost in the production’s overly square focus on the deeper lessons that could probably be left until later in the piece.

The work is staged with poignancy in mind and attention is placed on Gilchrist’s beautiful words. Having said that, more adventurous exploration of physicality would drive its message more effectively. Our other senses need to be manipulated more for a richer theatre as we commune to share space and ideas. It might be an exaggeration to say that “if you build it, they will come,” but magic must start somewhere, and it never comes from fear.