War and Courage is the Year 11 Theatre students’ adaptation of Bertolt Brecht’s Mother Courage, a play heavily imbued with anti-war sentiments – but of course, anyone who watched War and Courage in Term 1 (March) will know it is so much more than that. With its exploration of the unconventional nature of different theatrical techniques, War and Courage presented itself as a delightfully contemporary and deeply impactful interactive experience that depicts, with stunning accuracy, the universality of war – and somehow, it managed to exceed all expectations.
Audience engagement is only a fraction of what gave this performance its undeniable charm, but it is certainly an important part of its appeal. For many audiences, theatre is a sort of “sit still and shut up” experience, affirmed by the incessant shushing coming from the seat behind you. War and Courage, however, actively encouraged interaction – audience members were asked to stand, to move, to live within the art of the performance. Even at the very beginning, we were guided into the space by performers (in character, with comically aggressive accents, of course) and treated as guests at a Russian bar slash nightclub – which was an incredibly entertaining and a novel experience.
Another part of the beauty of this adaptation is how seamlessly the Year 11 Theatre, Dance and Music cohorts collaborated to create it. Though they were inspired by a workshop from Brisbane-based Theatre Company, IMRSE, who provided artistic consultation throughout the process, War and Courage very much brought the Year 11 students’ unbelievable talent and individual creativity forward. Beth Prior, Theatre student, said: “I really loved embracing the character through the costuming and creating subtext and backstory to enhance my performance. It was interesting to work with other actors to develop a cohesive and meaningful performance. For costume design, it was fun to help look for pieces and problem solve outfits and watch all the characters come together.”
But aside from the spectacular visuals and the absolutely fantastic work and effort put in by students, there is a third thing that War and Courage deserves an endless amount of praise for, and that’s the crushing impact of its themes and message, and how heartbreakingly accurate it was in its delivery. From its gorgeous soundtrack and mesmerising dance choreographies to the sheer raw emotion in the Theatre cohorts’ performances, War and Courage was a challenging, thought-provoking, and intricately crafted storyline about the horrors of violent conflict and the questionable morality of war. Audience members got to be in these situations with characters they grew to know and were granted the experience of feeling that sense of grief and fear alongside them in a way that isn’t nearly as present in other forms of media, or even other forms of theatre. This especially is what I believe made War and Courage such a masterpiece.
Article written by Rian Castilla, Year 11