The Underpants

Sugary Rum Productions and director Anthony Gooley give Sydney audiences a modern classic: The Underpants by Steve Martin. It’s a straight up and down, guffaw-worthy farce. Set in Germany in the early 20th century under the rule of Kaiser Wilhelm II, its action begins immediately after the King’s parade where Louise Maske (Gabrielle Scawthorn) suffers a great tragedy: her underwear falls down. It sets off the embarrassment of her husband Theo Maske (Duncan Fellows), a conspiracy with her neighbour Gertrude Deuter (Beth Daly), the fiery libido of Frank Versati (Ben Gerrard), the jealous whines of Benjamin Cohen (Robin Goldsworthy), and the bewilderment of Klinglehoff (Tony Taylor). What follows is a battle of archetypes and a cascade of closed doors and frustrated opportunities.

This comedy points the finger at middle-class sensibilities and the ludicrous expectations of different character archetypes. Theo is the German bureaucrat who scolds his wife for every imagined wrong, and scolds the world for not running like a German-made clock. He is autocratic and utterly without sensuality or poise. His tirade on manly men will make a modern audience grin and think him old-fashioned, but there is insight still in his boisterous simplicity. Duncan Fellows’ rendition is wonderfully annoying. He reaches his best heights when he's larger than life, though some moments of reality seem not to live up to the vitality of farce. The bright virtue of Frank Versati’s passion is dimmed when he turns to doggerel poetry and romantic notions that can only be sustained by gentlemen of leisure or the modern trust fund. Ben Gerrard performs with a percussive confidence, and we howl at his romantic distraction. Benjamin Cohen’s whining begins as intolerable yet grows on us as our sympathies extend to the soft man. Though a little detestable, he tries to avoid stepping on any toes. (The other men don’t seem to mind if their actions are like kicks to the shins of everyone else around them.) Goldsworthy’s embodiment of the "wet noodle" of a man is endearing, and it is an achievement to turn the character around as he does. 

While there is great entertainment and social commentary in the flabbergasted men, the show’s heart is its women. Beth Daly’s conspiring older neighbour makes scandal tempting and bucks stereotypes of female submissiveness in every intonation and inflection. Gabrielle Scawthorn is warm and always engaging on stage. We are inflamed by her libidinous vigour and are miserable when her future is dull. Scawthorn finds relatability in the tragicomic. 

The Underpants is a full-bodied night at the theatre that doesn’t take itself or its subject matter too seriously. The cast’s competence carries the production. It’s an undeniably good night out.