A comedy about a dysfunctional family? Sure. But also a powerful commentary on a dysfunctional time.
Hir, produced by New Theatre, is an engaging look in to a moment of complete transformation, when old norms and practices are supplanted by new, unfamiliar customs. Touching on themes of trauma, spousal abuse, gender identity, broken homes, empathy and more, its subject matter is compelling and cast performances are strong, allowing some minor faults to be excusable.
On its surface, Hir is about a homecoming. Isaac (Luke Visentin), a recently dishonourably discharged marine, has slunk back home to start anew. But it’s not just he who has changed. His family’s once-orderly home is a mess, clothes strewn carelessly on the floor and dirty dishes stacked high. His mother Paige (Jodine Muir) does not care. Order, structure, and financial responsibility are things of the past. Her main occupations now are smothering her second child Max (Lola Kate Carlton), a teenager self-administering testosterone, and slowly killing her husband, the once abusive but now invalid Arnold (Rowan Greaves), who is being force-fed oestrogen at Paige’s direction. Their lives are a mess, held together by Paige’s psychopathy, and the more Isaac learns the more unhinged he becomes.
Isaac’s journey reflects that of the audience. He learns about his family’s change at the same pace as the audience, and his confusion is designed to reflect their own response. Visentin’s performance captures this well. His responses are sometimes comical and sometimes horrific, and his descent into a low-key insanity is thoroughly engaging. Though some of his performance is over the top, Visentin is effective as the connection between the production and its crowd.
Carlton does well as Max. Beneath the emotional struggles caused by the character’s hormonal ingestion, there is a realisation that their family circumstances are absurd. However, despite wanting to escape it, Max understands ze (as their character’s pronoun is) is a product of it. Carlton reflects this well, balancing their character’s role as a pawn in Paige’s life with their desire for a life outside of it (but one just as chaotic). Though Max’s arc is not as profound as Isaac’s, and there were some drops in accent, their performance offers a lot as well.
Greaves as Arnold gives a strong physical performance and delightfully leaves the audience unsure whether he deserves better care or should suffer for his past actions. Muir anchors the show reasonably well, but occasionally has some issues recalling her dialogue and becomes monotone when delivering her character’s longer monologues. As an ensemble, the cast have a strong chemistry with each other, but some slow pacing makes the play drag longer than it should.
Victor Kalka’s set design captures the family’s chaos perfectly, matching what was described earlier. Patrick Howard’s direction is highly insightful. Despite the aforementioned pacing issues, such direction draws out the script’s themes and explores them profoundly. The dysfunction of the on stage family is not entirely absurd, but parallels can be drawn between it and the time we live in. Attitudes are changing, not always for the better. Transgender demographics continue to feel displaced and under constant scrutiny, with lip service to the understanding of their struggles not good enough. How to treat abusers in their old age is a divisive topic, with all angles towards this on show in Hir. 2025 is a chaos, and this production shows ways in which we could (and definitely should not) deal with it.
Ultimately, Hir presents an interesting story. Though there are ways its performances could be improved, it leaves audiences with a lot to consider. And it is that consideration which makes it valuable.
