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This charming production from Catherine Wheels Theatre Company tells the story of a misanthropic woman called Martha (Pauline Lynch) who lives in a little shack on the beach somewhere on the west coast of Scotland. Martha doesn't want a friend, it's clear. She throws back messages in bottles that turn up on her doorstep, she shoos away birds, she's rude to the postman when he tries to exchange a few pleasantries. She spends her days doing chores, listening to music, and scolding anyone who tries to have anything to do with her.

Then a goose turns up. At first Martha just feels sorry for him when he catches a cold in the rain -- a sneezing bird is always amusing -- and brings him inside for some TLC. But gradually, in spite of his generally bad behaviour, she starts to like the goose. Little by little, he worms his way into Martha’s affections. And we can see that he's fond of her too. He doesn’t speak, he's just a goose (albeit one with many moods and emotions, as puppeteered by David Rennie-Fitzgerald), but a couple of gleaming black eyes and a bendy goose-neck can say a lot, it turns out.

Lynch plays Martha with gusto, while the goose (for all that he’s being operated by a man who simply stands next to him in full view) is never less than convincing. Sound effects and an effective set – Martha’s makeshift house, which turns itself inside out for the few interior scenes – complete the illusion. I saw the show in the Sorrell Memorial Hall, where there’s no stage and daylight was streaming in through the windows, and yet it really felt like being there on Martha’s lonely beach. This is the sort of show where audience participation is inevitable. ‘He’s in your house!’, ‘He’s behind you!’, shouted the children. One boy even felt the need to give an impromptu review, declaring loudly, ‘You’re funny, Goose!’.

Martha is suitable for a broad range of ages. There’s simple activity – a gruff Scottish woman chasing a goose around her house can hardly fail to entertain – but there’s also a storyline and believable characters. Martha thinks she doesn’t need anyone, but when she makes a friend, even if he is just a ‘cheeky bird’, she realises how much she’s been missing out on. The program says the show is suitable for 4 year-olds and over. It certainly is a show for young children, and they’ll be the ones yelling out and having a great time, but adults won’t be bored either. Martha manages to be uplifting without shoveling on the sentiment.

Best of all, the goose is never turned into a human being. He behaves just as a goose would – wrecking the house, eating too much, leaving without saying goodbye – and yet Martha is able to understand and love him anyway. He’s a character in his own right, not a cute cartoon version of how a goose might behave. They’re two eccentrics who just happen to really like each other.


Ten Days on the Island and Catherine Wheels Theatre Company present
MARTHA

Director Gill Robertson
Original Direction Annie Wood

MARGATE
Margate Christian Church, Sandfly Road
Date: 28 March at 11am & 1pm

SORELL
Sorell Memorial Hall, Cole Street
Date: 29 March at 2pm & 4pm

DEVONPORT
Devonport Entertainment Centre, Rooke Street
Date: 4 April at 1pm & 3pm, 5 April at 11am & 2pm

Duration: 55mins (No interval)
Tickets: $20, Concession $10, Family $34.50 (1 Adult, 2 Children, additional person $7.50)
Online Bookings: www.tendaysontheisland.com