The Meteor is filing nicely as, wine in hand, myself and my date for the night enjoy the art exhibition in the Nancy Caiger Gallery prior to the ‘curtain going up’. It is the opening night for Carving in Ice Theatre Company’s latest production Riding in Cars with (Mostly Straight) Boys, directed by Gaye Poole.

The stage is bare but for a shiny red Saab 9000 CD Cabriolet. I recognise the vehicle immediately – in the nineties my father sold Saab vehicles and I always thought these were the coolest of that era. Though the car is fetching, and certainly well cast (a convertible, meaning that the actors can be seen, and heard from all angles) it is upstaged by the arrival of our players.

We meet Kyle (Leeim Rowe), a passenger in the great vehicle of life – he’s riding with Jay (David Simes) and he is in unrequited love! Unrequited, for Jay is not in love with Kyle, neither is Shane (Tycho Smith) nor Mike (Liam Hinton). Sad for him, as straight boys tick all of Kyle’s boxes – but then, don’t we all want for things we cannot have, at one time or another in our lives? 

Kyle and Jay’s initial exchange offers delicious energy which crackles in the air, and so fittingly sets the tone for the rest of the piece, as it flows quite seamlessly from ride-to-ride. Kyle’s never managed to get his full driver licence, so relies on his pals, and in his own lovable way cannot seem to help himself developing crushes on them all. There are plenty of laughs to be had in these early exchanges, and my heart goes soft for Kyle as he explains his crushes, like banging against a wall hoping it will become a door.  

The real challenges arrive with Trent (Zach Pickett) who loves Kyle very much, and when Shane informs Kyle quite bluntly of a change in his lifestyle we see a turning point as Kyle struggles to adapt accordingly.

All the actors give solid performances. Hats off to David Simes who plays Jay beautifully – a real soul connection is visible in his portrayal which I enjoy immensely. As always Liam Hinton is stunning, in his short appearance as Mike. Tycho Smith plays Shane coldly which works, but could work better. Carving in Ice newcomer Zach Pickett is charming and adorable as lovestruck Trent, carefully avoiding overplaying his exchanges with Kyle.  

Leeim Rowe is also a new face in the stable of Carving in Ice Theatre actors, and I can see that this is a challenging role for him; as the focal character he must slide in and out of playing and narrating. While certainly talented, his energy flags around the halfway point and never quite recovers – so there are subtleties which fall a little flat and lose some of their importance. It will be interesting to see if he can increase his fitness in the role over the season.

Playwright Sam Brooks has undoubtedly written a great play: there is an economy of words which sensitively portrays the heterosexual males in cute contrast to our lead Kyle, who is an undeniably ‘out’ homosexual male. Gaye Poole has done well to guide her cast towards empowering that word economy with plenty of expression and physicality which is enjoyable, and lends the necessary richness to telling the story of these male relationships. Logan Cook’s lighting design is striking in its simplicity – working well to depict the moods and spaces within the story.

In the programme, Gaye Poole’s note mentions the premiere of Riding in Cars with (Mostly Straight) Boys – at Chaffers Car Park, Wellington in 2014. Tonight’s production is different in that instead of two actors fulfilling the five roles (one playing Kyle, while the other plays Jay, Shane, Mike and Trent), Gaye has been granted permission to cast five actors; assigning them one role each. In Carving in Ice Theatre’s kaupapa around working with young practitioners, I can see the rationale for doing so in this instance; it’s a wonderful learning experience for these actors.

Though Poole has cast well, I suggest that, in populating the cast, it has to the detriment of story’s power. I cannot help but think that, in watching the names change while the face stays the same, the focus remains solely on Kyle’s intimate journey towards self-realisation.

My date and I thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, and I leave The Meteor considering returning on Friday evening 6 September, when playwright Sam Brooks will be in attendance, giving an audience Q&A following the performance.

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