High school is hard. You’re growing. You’re changing. Your parents can be mean, can be distant; they can be absent or cruel. You’re in unrequited love with a friend. And there’s family drama you want to keep hidden from your mates. And part of you thinks your life is on hold until you grow up.
Life for
Kimberly Levaco is a bit harder than all that. She has a rare genetic condition
which means she ages at four times the normal rate. The other kids seem to treat
her okay, but her parents are a lot more fragile.
Kimberly
Akimbo, which
opened last night as part of Melbourne Theatre Company’s 2025 season, is a
life-affirming story of teen angst, making the best out of things and living
life to the full. If it wasn’t executed so brilliantly, you might roll your
eyes at the teen-soap tropes.
Mum Pattie
(Christie Whelan-Browne) has both hands in casts from carpal tunnel surgery.
She’s heavily pregnant and wilfully chaotic. Dad Buddy (Nathan O’Keefe) is an
alcoholic who sometimes forgets about his daughter, while he’s taking bets at
the pub to make a little extra cash on the side. Early on, Kim’s parents made
me think of Matilda’s parents in Matilda, but these aren’t mercurial Roald
Dahl characters; soon we get to see what’s underneath their awful exteriors.
And then there’s Aunt Debra (Casey Donovan), whose past none of them want to
confront. Kimberly’s family is a lot.
Australian
musical theatre legend Marina Prior shines in the role of Kimberly. She perfectly
embodies both the enthusiasm of a teen fumbling her way through new
experiences, as well as the gravitas of ageing. Prior’s voice can turn from the
rich full-body we expect at the height of her powers to the aching vulnerability
of youth in a moment.
Of the four
actors playing the other students, only Marty Alix has professional musical
theatre experience, most notably as John Laurens and Philip Hamilton in Hamilton
and as Jack in Belvoir’s production of Into the Woods. The kids work
wonderfully as an ensemble, harmonising beautifully and underlining the
absurdities of growing up in a world where their parents are fumbling through
life.
Darcy Wain
is the stand out as Seth, holding his own in his scenes with Prior, cracking us
up with his super-nerdy references and penchant for anagrams. His rendition of “Good
Kid” is heartbreaking and his tuba solo should not be missed!
Christie
Whelan-Browne reminds us all how ridiculously funny she can be, then next
minute delivering a moving rendition of “Father Time”. Nathan O’Keefe embodies
the hopeless dad role with a twinkle in his eye. And Casey Donovan proves once
again how expertly she can steal the show with her booming voice and comic
physicality in the role of awful aunt Debra.
The Australian
premiere seasons, under the lively direction of Mitchell Butel, is the first
major production of the show after its Broadway premiere in 2023, where it won
five Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Book and Best Original Score.
Creators David Lindsay-Abaire and Jeanine Tesori previously collaborated on Shrek:
The Musical and they have reunited to adapt Lindsay-Abaire’s 2001 play into
a full-hearted musical maelstrom that drags us through teen earnestness and
grabs the audience by the balls.
Jonathon Oxlade’s
versatile set is filled with simple shapes and bright colours. Amy Campbell’s
choreography, for performers both on and off rollerblades, fully articulates
the underlying awkwardness and passions of youth. Alisa Paterson’s costumes are
eye-catching, capturing the kind of late 90s family that hasn’t really progressed
past 1989.
I went into
Kimberly Akimbo knowing only the basic premise and having heard raves
from New York friends, some of whom saw it multiple times. I didn’t know any of
the songs, but from the authors’ pedigree, I expected a lot. Lindsay-Abaire’s
lyrics are clever and funny. Tesori’s music is skilfully layered.
I’ve tried
not to give too much away; there are some plot swerves and backstory reveals
that are ridiculous and delightful and truly surprising. And with Kimberly not
knowing what her future will bring or – because of her disease – if she has a
future at all, in amongst all the silly ups-and-downs of being sixteen, you might
very well have a panic attack or feel like the world is about to end.
Kimberly
Akimbo is full of
joy, tinged by the grief that comes with growing up too fast.
- Keith Gow, Theatre First
It’s at the Playhouse at Arts Centre Melbourne until August 30
Photos: Sam Roberts
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