Saturn Returns

Synopsis

Every thirty years, the planet Saturn returns to the same place in the universe it occupied on the day of your birth. Its arrival is said to herald pivotal events in a person's life. In Saturn Returns, we follow one man, Gustin Novak, at the ages of 28, 58 and 88, as he reaches a series of crossroads with three key women and comes to understand how the echoes of the past have defined the orbit of his life. An enthralling time-bending structure allows us to watch Gustin over a period of sixty years in a series of deftly interwoven scenes. Moving from wry humour to touching poignancy, this new play from one of American theatre’s brightest new voices unashamedly looks for answers to life's big questions.

Our Review:

Andrew Girvan - 5 November 2010

Set in a single room, seemingly trapped in time, Saturn Returns plays with the astrological phenomenon that the gas giant returns to the position it occupied at the time of one's birth approximately every 30 years. We see the snapshotted life of Gustin Novak, accompanied by his carer at 88, daughter at 58 and wife at 28, all sensitively played by Lisa Caruccio Came.

Noah Haidle's play is beautifully written, intertwining the mundanity of everyday life with an exploration of loss and loneliness. Novak's slightly curmudgeonly personality is developed carefully by the three actors portraying him (Richard Evans at 88, Nicholas Gecks at 58 and Christopher Harper at 28) with overlapping scenes allowing "58" and "88" to reflect, memories torturously presented before them.

Appearing to constantly crave the past, the pain-wrecked embodiments of Novak are forced to watch and remember his relationships falling apart. Dialogue ripples down the ye...

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