Mary Coustas introduces audiences to her riotous family as she fondly remembers the moments that shaped her life.
Presented by: A-List Entertainment
Reviewed: 05 May, 2023
Stevie Wonder’s I’ll Be Loving You Always plays as Mary Coustas walks onto the stage, the perfect song to kick off for her one-woman show. Coustas recounts stories of family members who loved her and how they shaped her life.
She is an articulate and riotous storyteller. Coustas moves, stream of consciousness style, from her father’s battle with heart disease during her childhood to her current navigation of crunchy mother politics while waiting for school pickup.
She reaches slapstick levels of comedy as she imitates family members: heaving and throwing her arms out wide, remembering an ill-fated car ride with her nauseated aunt – playing both victim and well-intentioned assailant at her father’s funeral turned comedy of errors – mimicking her mother’s excited, overly loud whisper as she gossips around the kitchen sink. While the audience laughs along with these larger than life characters, we fall in love with them too.
Coustas shares her unique and charismatic autobiography with the audience. She does not shy away from discussing heartbreak and trauma, but balances it with the fierce love and hilarity she learnt from her family. “In life you gotta find the funny, otherwise you’re screwed,” she says with a smile. Mary Coustas – This Is Personal is a heartfelt experience – you will cry, laugh, applaud, and learn.
Reviewed by Nicola Woolford
Photo credit: Cassandra Hannagan
Venue: Dunstan Playhouse
Season: 5th – 6th May 2023
Duration: 65 minutes
Tickets: $79.90
Bookings: https://www.adelaidefestivalcentre.com.au/whats-on/mary-coustas
More News
