Melbourne Fringe 2017
Twenty Minutes to Nine
Amanda Santuccione
Genre: Poetry-Based Theatre, Solo Performance, Spoken Word, Storytelling
Venue: The Dock @ The Courthouse Hotel, 86-90 Errol Street, North Melbourne
Festival: Melbourne Fringe
Low Down
Amanda Santuccione debuts Twenty Minutes to Nine for both the show and herself at Melbourne Fringe.
Review
Twenty Minutes to Nine explores one woman’s story focusing on the pivotal moments in her life, mostly tied to death and loss. Amanda narrates her story from childhood through to current day (she’s in her mid-twenties) in a heartfelt, honest and raw manner. From watching her dad play guitar when she was little to holding her nonna’s hand as an adult, this self-proclaimed talker weaves a rich picture of the important people in her life and how they have impacted her – especially when she needed their support most. She paints a rich picture of her everyday life from her family home to her share house to her favourite bar in a level of detail that is befitting the moments of tragedy that abruptly interrupts her at times hilarious conversational tone.
With the aid of a guitar, a loop pedal and an accordion, Amanda navigates herself through her autobiographical narrative dealing with the loss of friends from suicide and cancer. The times when Amanda shares her poetry and engages her instruments and loop pedal are when she lights up and radiates with almost unadulterated joy. Each of these moments is a tribute to someone she has lost. It’s beautiful to watch. Her show needed much more of her doing these as this was when her real emotion burst to life.
I admired Amanda for the frank and tender way in which she shared her experiences of loss. It is a wonderfully refreshing take on how societal attitudes have shifted in talking openly and freely about grief. Amanda gives a sober insight into her generations’ approach to these things and there’s a lesson in observing that for everyone.
