Rick's Documentary sounded bloody awful. But not to us. To us we still had harmony ...

and-
Rick is named and he remains an unseen present on stage but he is not
personalised in any depth. Our focus remains, as his does, on his subjects.
His interview questions direct what is revealed and shape our perceptions.
The interview format is an effective dramatic device for it allows the
playwright to literally and figuratively spotlight the women's experiences.
He is only the disembodied voice that is heard, his dramatic function
- that of providing the docum.entary incentive for their stories to be told.
His interview gives a public framework to the revelations that are made,
~roviding .i~formation and insight. "This is what Rick's been after all along,
the 'Japs' could never ever take that away." Voice and spirit are fused, "We
forgot the Japanese-we forgot our hunger-ou;-toils-barbed wire-
everything ... Together we made this glorious sound that rose above ~he
camp-above the jungle-above the war-rose and rose and took us. with it."
Sheila also sums up its psychological importance, "Fifty voices ~et us free."
Sound effects add atmospheric detail and mood. In the opening Acf for
example, when the women describe the sinking of their ship, we hear "the
distant sound oflapping waves".

I 11 bet. Th1s 1s why the free boo~e and the room with the ocean views. He's Projected images
been softening us up. Can'tyou see that, Sheila?" Visuals reinforce the script, the use of photographic images reinforcing the
On one hand his role is n~utrally objective in its search for the truth. historical veracity of what is being said. Evocative glimpses into the past are
On another level he remains manipulative is getting to the heart of how given through slides of ships burning in Singapore harbour, the Japanese
they were affected. In seeking public disclosure, he becomes a surrogate invasion and the emaciation of the prisoners of war. Distinctively visual
Misto trying to use theatre as a memorial to the wartime experiences of methods are used to allow the audience to witness the horrific reality of the
such women. His surprise however evidences some development of Rick's period. This augments the simple set design and the use ofa two char;>!'ter
character and is testimony to the impact their accounts have had on him. cast while helping develop the play's ironic undertone. This is clear wh~1,
There is also the artist's enjoyment of achieving a good result, making Rick images released by the Australian Defence Department, showing health/,
"delighted with the show" and "strutting round downstairs" very pleased clean and happy women are dramatically juxtaposed with those that showed
with himself. While he has inadvertently opened old wounds for Bridie and them as they actually were when they were first liberated.
Sheila, he has been a means to their salvation for they have been forced to
confront their demons and get on with their lives. Lighting and Stage Directions .
Light is another dramatic device that helps develop themes and characters.
Sonata, Music and Sound Effects Misto's stage directions_ are .often highly detailed, specifying tone,
Sonata is a musical term describing something written specifically to be mannerism or line delivery to create a particular mood or atmospheric
played by two :q1usical instruments. Music is an linking motif throughout context. Directions such as 'fondly', slightly surprised', 'disapprov:inglj',
the play, beginning when they both burst into song at the end of the first 'very calm', 'ironic smile' and 'casually, trying to make light of it', position
interview session. Their performance effectively takes the audience back to the audience's interpretive response. They also focus attention on Sheila
the past because aurally and visually, historical information is conveyed. and Bridie's emotions, building tension and suspense as their relationship
When Jerusalem reaches a crescendo, scenes of the Japanese invasion are fluctuates. The opening stage directions read: "darkness. Out of the silence
juxtaposed on backdrop screens, ironically juxtaposing image and triumphal comes the voice of Bridie" and after her first line of dialogue, she is visually
song. Lacking real instruments, we are told the prisoners had to improvise by spotlit. stage lighting gradually reveals the 'on air' sign establishing our
using their voices alone. Even when their numbers were decimated and the perception of the television studio context. The interplay oflight and dark,
choir "couldn't sing anymore", Bridie and Sheila fill the gap. They thought "it via spotlighting, blackouts and fade outs, help develop atmosphere or mood
was up to us to carry on ... we sang our sonata whenever we could-so the camp for the rest of the play. When Bridie and Sheila are emotionally separated,
would know there was still music left." . they are often lit separately, whereas once reconciled by the end of the play,
Music thereby becomes pivotal to their survival; an aural symbol of they are lit in partnership. As they dance, the lights gradually fade while a
willpower and determination, "We'd sit in our hut at night and hum. We'd "very bright spotlight" highlights the shoehorn. This visually signifies its
do it while we dug the graves." Bridie laconically observes, "It probably symbolic importance as something that first brought them together, then
forced them apart, and now, once again, reunited them. -