Carissa Licciardello packs a punch with their latest show ‘Anna K’ by exposing double standards in the performance of a lifetime.
Hosted at the Malthouse Theatre in South Melbourne, the performance impressively takes place entirely in one scene, a hotel room. With a sold-out opening night performance, the theatre held the audience in its hands, tucked in for the reality-check performance that was about to be unveiled.
Anna K tells the story of a high-profile journalist (Caroline Craig), who’s also a mother, a recent divorcee and now the centre of a scandal once the media discovers Anna’s newest relationship, the 27-year-old whistle-blowing source (Callan Colley) of a previous article Anna had written.
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The production provides an intimate perspective of Anna’s downward spiral in the hotel room she uses to stay out of the limelight. Whereas her partner – also included in the scandal – comes and goes from the room as he pleases. This is just one of the many ways the performance enforces a statement about a gendered double-standard enforced upon women.
With the influence of renowned Russian classic Anna Karenina, the Malthouse production of Anna K portrays a modernised twist, providing the more insightful and progressive perspective necessary in 2022. The original story, however, is more of an underlying backline. It’s not obvious that this is influenced by a 130-year-old story. Instead, it’s refreshing to see a totally new depiction.
The show prevails through its acting. Craig puts on the performance of a lifetime – the audience feels the dread overbearing her. From the opening scene to the play’s conclusion, Craig and the cast evoke realistic emotions that reel the audience in. In tune with the performances from the cast, we see the engaging set design of a premium hotel room, combined with cinematic overhead lighting that conveys that raw uncut glimpse into this so-called ‘scandal’.
The performance also dips its toe into social media and its host of insults. We see Anna fend off personal slander that we’re all so used to hearing. Anna reads aloud hashtags along the lines of #cancelAnnaK and #AnnaFake, which feel like an attempt to quickly incorporate elements of trending tech culture that need to be further redefined in theatre.
Although the show does stagger in its pacing and in certain artistic aspects, Anna K succeeds in conveying a powerful message that is both contemporary and essential; the misogynistic societal treatment of high-profile women, particularly in comparison to their male peers.
Catch Anna K at the Malthouse Theatre until September 4.
