Set in a near future, Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity takes place in the middle of a war that has persisted for 100 years.
Director Nadia Tass mocks the notion that the future will be altruistic in any way with a selection of protest songs (e.g. Bob Dylan – Masters of War) and their like that play gently under the rhubarb of the audience taking their seat and over the rubble of the set.
Ishan Vivekanantham’s expansive and effective set places us in a museum, damaged by bombardment, with what’s left standing turned into a prison for torture and interrogation. To be sure, considering the gender and accent of the Soldier (Kate Cole), you’d be forgiven for thinking the play was set in the Al Qarara Cultural Museum in Gaza. This is no longer a sanctuary for art or inspiration, a feeling brought out nicely by David Parker’s lighting design, all halogen tubes casting stark light at sharp angles.
There are two prisoners – a Nurse (Laila Thaker) and an Art Restorer (Jane Montgomery-Griffiths). The soldier is torturing the Art Restorer to have her submit and agree to repair the various works of damaged art so their forces might rehabilitate their image in the eyes of the wider population. Yet as much as the Restorer has suffered unimaginable loss, the offence she feels from what has been inflicted on this building particularly, and what it continues to endure, is colossal.
Heather McDonald’s script does a fantastic job building the conflict between the Soldier and the Restorer, the engine driving the narrative forward. Yet, for all the hopeful-as-you-could-realistically-expect ending (including some lovely bit of magic realism with an unexpected cameo), the play does compress and speed up a lot in the final minutes to get us to that end. Fortunately, that acceleration doesn’t make the final image as the lights fade any less satisfying.
Jane Montgomery-Smith does such beautiful work as the Restorer. At times her voice forcefully fills the space in rage or reaction, but what you appreciate most are the smaller moments. Her performance was a masterclass in how communicating pain is so much more than merely adjusting the volume level.
Laila Thaker’s Nurse may show the Restorer more care than the Soldier, but in some ways is just as manipulative. Both her and the Restorer grapple with what it will take to escape and Laila gave a convincing portrayal of a figure wrestling with that cost and the desperation to see her family again.
Kate Cole’s Soldier is callous and severe, whose lack of hesitation when dispensing threats and violence appear to make her irredeemable. Years of training and fighting and propaganda have battered her humanity, leaving so little of it behind when we first meet her. The brilliance of Cole’s performance is how over time in her scenes with the Restorer she is able to find the smallest piece of humanity again.
Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity juggles hope and despair over its compelling runtime. Despite its future setting, the comparisons with today are unmistakable. As you leave, you’re reminded of what the author Omar El Akked said: “One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This.”
Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity
Theatre Works, 14 Acland Street, St Kilda
Performance:
Season continues to 1 August 2026
Information and Bookings: www.theatreworks.org.au
Images: Jane Montgomery-Griffiths, Kate Cole and Laila Thaker – photo by Sarah Clarke | Laila Thaker and Jane Montgomery-Griffiths – photo by Sarah Clarke | Kate Cole – photo by Sarah Clarke
Review: June Collins