Pramkicker

Playwright Sadie Hasler wastes no time in kicking off Pramkicker. In its opening moments, her two heroine sisters, Jude and Susie, powerfully stampede on stage to Joan Jett’s ‘Bad Reputation’, before diving headfirst into Jude’s first appointed anger management class post the titular kicking of the pram. It is a firecracker start to the two-hander show, which follows two women at opposite ends of their thirties, and with equally opposite relationships with the idea of motherhood. 

Child-free – not less, she reassures us! – Jude is a woman at the tail-end of her thirties, with absolutely no intentions of bearing offspring. Her sister has just dipped her toes into the same age bracket and has other ideas. What ensues is an hour of non-stop wise-cracks and one-liners that shines a spotlight on the societal pressures that still hang over the modern-day woman.

Pramkicker was originally borne (pardon the pun) in Hasler’s home country of the UK. And unsurprisingly has expanded to multiple international productions. It is a stripped-back affair that packs its punches in witty Fleabag-esque dialogue, hysterical reenactments, and disturbing recollections of everything from consent to abortions. What begins as a farcical tale of a woman throwing a tantrum in a public place because a mother and her pram are depriving her of her quarter strength, almond latte with no foam, evolves into a beautiful exploration of the complexities of sisterly love, and despite their obvious differences, they share the same societal expectations that have been imposed on women since the dawn of time. Their differing views on motherhood also highlight an incredibly relevant issue women still face today: their right to choose. We’ve all seen the headlines of 2021. As a child-free woman in her early thirties with chronic-illness-induced fertility concerns, this was both a breath of fresh air to see on stage, as well as maybe a slight punch in the gut as there was nowhere to run and hide. But that is precisely how powerful this show is.

Director Poppy Rowley has injected an energy into her production that spars with Hasler’s chaotic dialogue. Working with only two chairs and the clothes on the actors’ backs, she grants the pair the creative freedoms to utilise the theatre space to bounce off each other, monologue, fight, embrace and maybe occasionally tackle each other to the ground in a headlock. Anna Burgess as Jude is a powerhouse of wit and fury and lets her shady one-liners roll off the tongue like there are no repercussions (the anger management classes might suggest otherwise). Her stage presence is magnetic and vigorous in the moments that count and raw and exposed when her layers are stripped back. Burgess is an absolute force to reckoned with, and it was a delight to watch an actress command the stage the way she does here. This is by no means a derailing of Amy May Nunn and her Susie. Nunn brings a level of nuance and subtle complexity that beautifully opposes and balances out Burgess’ frenzied energy. She also flexes her muscles in taking on the roles of minor characters (with accents to boot) – and we acknowledge by curtain call that Nunn’s capabilities match Burgess’ – just that she was issued with a different set of tools. 

Pramkicker was a rip-roaringly good time. In our uncertain times, it just felt so wonderful to be sitting in a theatre again, watching bad-ass women take the stage, with fellow bad-ass women running the show. Highly recommend checking this out at first opportunity. As Jude screams after kicking over the pram, 

“I am the Edith f****ing Piaf of the empty womb. Je ne regrettay f***ing rien!!”

Pramkicker
Theatre Works, 14 Acland Street, St Kilda, 3182
theatreworks.org.au/program/pramkicker