Pete is not a winner. In fact, his life is every bit as depressing as it looks. Days before his wedding, his fiancée Harriet dumps him for another man, labelling him a robot in the process.
Lost and looking for direction, Pete does what an increasing number of us are doing, he turns to artificial intelligence for advice. AI’s response in just 1.49 seconds, The best revenge is living well.
Written by Will O’Mahony, Day (After Day) In The Life Of The Useless is a darkly funny, inventive and increasingly thought provoking journey through forty five chapters of one man’s spectacularly unfortunate life.
The titles of each chapter are projected onto a large digital screen as we move rapidly between the various situations in Pete’s existence. Some are of his own making, while others are dictated by AI, including the rather questionable suggestion that he start a fight with a co-worker for no apparent reason.
One bad decision inevitably leads to another, as a growing web of lies sends Pete spiralling into increasingly devastating and frequently hilarious circumstances. O’Mahony’s writing ventures into some very dark territory, even finding humour in death and thoughts of suicide without making the audience feel guilty for laughing.
Pete’s family offers little comfort. His mother and father happily admit that he wasn’t particularly loved, but was simply something they brought up. Meanwhile, Mum is carrying on an affair with the full knowledge and permission of his father. It is another wonderfully absurd layer in a world where human relationships appear dysfunctional.
At the centre of proceedings is an exceptional ensemble of Australian talent led by writer and performer Will O’Mahony. Tess Bowers, Nathaniel Langworthy, Catherine Moore and Steve Le Marquand move effortlessly between an assortment of characters, personas and accents as they populate Pete’s increasingly chaotic world.
O’Mahony and Langworthy, bounce beautifully off one another. Langworthy as Dan is frustrating as he sets to orchestrate and set in motion the various situations of bad luck that Pete encounters.
One of the standout scenes involves Pete encountering two young sisters, played superbly by Bowers and Moore, selling lemonade in their front yard. So pathetic and down and out has Pete become that he actually considers robbing the girls of their profits.
What follows is a wonderfully clever exchange between Pete and the sisters, perfectly capturing the production’s ability to find comedy in the most desperate of situations.
Director Adam Mitchell maintains an assured pace throughout, allowing the individual chapters to unfold with enough breathing room for the comedy to land while never allowing Pete’s increasingly disastrous journey to lose momentum.
The production’s physical element is particularly impressive. A slow motion fight sequence is both hilarious and astonishingly convincing, with every punch appearing to connect and inflict genuine pain. It is beautifully choreographed and another example of the precision in this production.
The set is deceptively simple. A giant digital screen dominates the space alongside three dimensional geometric shapes and an enormous piece of fabric cascading towards the stage. These shapes are continually repurposed, becoming everything from an office and kitchen to the side of a cliff.
Costuming contributes to the production’s colourful and playful visual language, with performers frequently appearing in mismatched, differently coloured shoes. A small but effective detail that complements the slightly off kilter world Pete inhabits.
Beneath all the outrageous situations and sharp comedy Day (After Day) In The Life Of The Useless has something much more unsettling to say. The relationship between humans and artificial intelligence is cleverly juxtaposed with Pete’s relationship with Harriet. Pete is profoundly in love with her, yet Harriet feels nothing for him. Ironically, she is the one who accuses Pete of being a robot, yet emotionally it is Harriet who appears almost machine like.
And therein lies one of the production’s most intriguing questions. How willingly will humans place their love, trust and faith in something that can never feel anything for them? Pete turns to AI because he wants answers. It responds instantly, confidently and without emotion. But advice is easy when you don’t have to live with the consequences.
What begins as the story of a hapless loser trying desperately to get his life back on track gradually becomes something considerably more profound, an examination of loneliness, human connection and our increasing willingness to allow technology to guide the most personal parts of our lives.
Dark, hilarious, moving and at times wonderfully ridiculous Day (After Day) In The Life Of The Useless asks some uncomfortable questions about a future increasingly influenced by artificial intelligence. As Pete discovers, perhaps the greatest danger is not that AI will become more human. It is that humans might become more like AI.
Day (After Day) In The Life Of The Useless
Heath Ledger Theatre – State Theatre Centre of WA, 176 William Street, Perth
Performance: Wednesday 2 September 2026
Season continues to 20 September 2026
Information and Bookings: www.blackswantheatre.com.au
Images: Day (After Day) in the Life of the Useless – photos by Daniel J Grant
Review: Craig Dalglish