The Company I Keep

Performed by The Second Echo Ensemble

Peacock Theatre, Salamanca Arts Centre, Hobart

Thursday 20^th May 2010

By Anneliese Milk

She loves me. She likes me. He is my son. She is my sister. He is my enemy. He catches the same bus as me. She has our mother’s eyes. She is our mother.- Finegan Kruckemeyer

Despite our many differences we all experience the same breadth of emotion and nurse the same desire to be loved. Although our relationships may be unique, complex and varied, we each form the nucleus of the ever-evolving company we keep. At the same time, we all experience times when we have no company at all.

The Company I Keep

Performed by the Second Echo Ensemble
Tasmanian Theatre Company and Cosmos
Thursday May 20, Friday May 21, Saturday May 22
Peacock Theatre

by Stephenie Cahalan

Eleven actors on stage and many more on a screen, minimalist lighting, movement, soliloquies on love, nervousness, wanting to look and be our best. The need for approval. The need for love.

This is essentially what The Company I Keep explores, and does so artfully and engagingly. The story stands alone and would work for any cast, be they professionals or amateurs, from any background. This cast happens to include five people who might be considered intellectually disabled, yet are clearly emotionally intelligent performers and highly competent actors. Creator and director Finegan Krukemeyer has made a piece of theatre that makes the stage a level playing field for every person that occupies it; a liberating experience for performer and audience alike.