Bare is a play where two actors play sixteen different characters. Brianna Jude and James Corcoran take the audience on a journey through New Zealand culture, from fast food, to the gym, to a night on the town. At first the characters seem isolated, and I think the play will be a succession of different characters, each giving us a brief window into their lives and experiences. But as the play progresses we begin to see the links between characters as several become familiar faces: an old Fijian man talking about his life and the things he regrets; a young woman working as a personal trainer; a young man looking for better prospects …

Along the way we meet other characters, building a picture that feels like a typical neighbourhood in a typical Kiwi town. Both actors build characters that are beautiful, funny and real. Each is recognizable on their own, and at no time does the audience get left behind thinking ‘now who is that?’ The audience is guaranteed to see someone they recognize from their own lives, and every now and again we get a glimpse of the sad reality lying behind people’s facades.

The set is minimal, with a simple brick wall creating the set and giving a place from which the actors emerge in their different characters. The lighting is also simple, with sound cues that add to the onstage action and help us to move between the characters and storylines. All of these technical elements work well and suit the tone of the play.

Written by Toa Fraser, Bare made its debut in 1998 and has picked up several awards. The play had lost none of its spark, still feeling as current and on the button as it did when first performed. Auckland-based company Simple Truth Theatre has taken this play around the North Island and is finishing their run in Palmerston North – where it runs until Friday. 

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Toa Fraser’s Bare has been performed multiple times since its 1998 debut, confidently making its claim as a Kiwi classic. Simple Truth Theatre, comprised by a group of Unitec’s most recent acting graduates, have pulled together a mostly bare-bones production of the play in an eager act of artistic passion, intending to take the show around the North Island.

Playing 24 different characters, including a parking warden, Burger King worker and Shakespeare-loving grandfather, Brianna Jude and James Corcoran show off their capable acting chops as chameleons, each and every interpretation driven by clear characterisation and idiosyncrasies, both vocally and physically. At times, some of their choices border on the obvious, robbing characters of nuance, but the over-the-topness serves the comedy well. The infamous sex scene between romantic couple Dave and Venus is a particular standout, showcasing athleticism as much as acting. [More] 

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When Bare was first put on in the late nineties it was an up to the minute contemporary tale, riddled in typical Toa Fraser fashion with references to music, films, celebrities and other pop-culture symbols of the day.  I confess I expected these references be updated to maintain the sense of relevance in our time now (as they were for Bare for Christchurch at the Civic: the large Red Cross charity production five years ago), and to avoid potentially confusing younger audiences who might not ‘get it’. 

Instead, nearly two decades later, the script is unchanged and Bare is now a period piece: Titanic is at the top of the box office, Reality TV is a rapidly growing new-ish industry and minimum wage is $8.50.  Far from alienating, it simply highlights the strength of Fraser’s extraordinary, convoluted, hilarious and sensitive play. 

Co-directed by Simple Truth Theatre’s co-producers Taylor Griffin and Rhian Firmin, Brianna Jude and James Corcoran sink their teeth into this desirable opportunity to portray an assortment of characters that would challenge anyone’s range. 

Besides her central turn as Venus the physically obsessed gym freak, Firmin’s roles include Tina the teenage homegirl getting an education; Shelley the bitter BK employee with issues at home; Rachael the diplomatic BK manager with hysterical tendencies; a poetic parking warden-cum-existential philosopher; a would-be politically militant history professor and a sassy drunk woman vociferously defending her right to urinate in public places. 

Corcoran has two central roles as Dave the generation X cinema employee, intelligent but unqualified, and the old, unnamed Fijian man with a twinkle in his eye belying his deep-set regrets.  His other portrayals include a vein-poppingly uptight American TV producer, ‘Smokie’ the swaggering homie tagger and Sean the overly gregarious bloke-next-door.

The duo works hard to effectively populate the story with its eclectic cast of characters. As one might expect, the actors fit some roles more naturally than others but overall the standard of credibility is high, showcasing both the young recent Unitec graduates’ evident skills as well as the strength of Fraser’s now classic script. Some quite moving and/or disturbing accounts from certain characters pack a momentary visceral punch, before the tone quickly lightens up again, never lingering on pathos for more than a beat or two. 

The majority of scenes are monologues; not self-reflecting soliloquys as such (although a good deal of self reflection does take place), Generally we only witness one side of each character’s conversations.  A couple of exceptional scenes between Venus and Dave are played physically from opposite sides of the stage, modelling the original production.  It’s an ingeniously engaging convention, allowing us to focus directly on each of their front-on reactions as their intimacy increases to an entertaining climax, as it were. 

Myriad interweaving plots and sub-plots predominately all link back to the old Fijian man, with most being his neighbours and members of his family, or their friends and acquaintances.  On this my third viewing of Fraser’s play, I’m still unsure how the warden or the drunk woman connect to the rest of the dramatis personae, but I’m not that concerned as they fit well into the microcosm of Bare’s diverse community.

The minimal production design facilitates the eclectic performances and their fluid transitions.  Co-producer/director Firmin’s set design comprises a brick-wall style screen backdrop and one portable square rostrum. She has also designed the similarly varied sound design, punctuating many a scene with sonic poignancy.  Likewise, Zach Howells’ lighting design serves its purpose with exemplary unobtrusive subtlety.

The actors themselves would appear to have had a field day (perhaps literally?) sourcing for themselves a plethora of appropriate costumes and accessories to aid with their sundry roles.  All in all it’s a solid, worthy rendition set to engage a new generation in their ensuing North Island schools tour.

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