The Camel (VIC) Review

Three artworks. Two Siblings. One apartment. A camel in the Ceiling. Yes, that’s right a camel calling for help whilst the two siblings concur on failure, siblinghood, relationships as well as trying to succeed as artists. Having an extravert and an introvert created the perfect as well as relatable sibling dynamic.

On the 29th of July, The Camel had their opening night with an audience beaming with joy and laughter at the Motley Bauhaus. A predominantly mid-20s audience was welcomed into a small, intimate space establishing a close actor-audience relationship before the performance even began. It felt like we were welcomed into a home, with a grey couch with blankets on stage left, artworks covered in black cloths and an overloaded bookshelf. To our surprise, actor Harry McGee was already on stage rugged up and hiding under blankets placed on the couch, which is very relatable for most Melbournians in the winter.

From the beginning, the powerhouse performers Myfanwy Hocking & Harry McGee had the audience constantly laughing at their relatable sibling relationship as they were roasting each other, troughing anything they can at one another and most importantly having underlying unconditional support for one another. A typical sibling relationship.

Myfanwy Hocking is an incredible actor, as she was still captivating the audience even when it was silent on the stage, as well as portraying a relatable anxious character who wants everything to be absolutely perfect. Harry McGee was hilarious as he stretched as much as he could on the couch in order to grab the champagne bottle on the table. All of that just so he did not have to get up off the couch… could it be more relatable?

 

Tying it all together was the mysterious hunting camel they found in the ceiling bringing the siblings to work together and show their support for one another.

Directed by Marni Mount and cleverly written by Dylan Van Den Berg, this play explored failure, siblinghood, trying to succeed in the arts and facing a slight problem of well… Camels in the ceiling.