Lisa Allan reviews The Cat Eleonore, by Caren Jess, translated and directed by Peter Falkenberg for Free Theatre, at the Climate Action Campus, Wednesday 7 May 2025.
It is a brisk night and Avonside’s Climate Action Campus is mostly dark, creating a sense of adventure as my theatre-mate and I seek out the Free Theatre’s performance space for the first English language translation of Caren Jess’s award-winning 2023 play, The Cat Eleonore. Once parked, there are a number of little illuminated sandwich boards that lead the way to the ticket desk, and Eleonore’s bar, the latter of which is run by Free Theatre stalwart, Greta Bond. The bar is bustling with theatre-goers who have turned out to support opening night with what looks to be a full house. Having been away from Ōtautahi for the best part of fifteen years, and then spending most of my time back at Little Andromeda and the Court Theatre, it is not surprising that I only recognise three faces in the crowd. It is a different vibe to the aforementioned theatres and I feel like I have been initiated into a secret underground club with repurposed classrooms as its stomping ground.
The time arrives for us to be ushered into the next room. I am one of the last to enter into the purple-lit, thick smokey air of this space but am lucky enough to find front row seats. I love being up close. The cat, Eleonore, played by Marian McCurdy, is pre-set atop a large human-sized scratching post. She is lying with her back to us, doing as cats love to do, snoozing. With a deft lights down, lights up cue, Eleonore awakens and begins to clean herself. My eyes widen as she licks her furry costume bits for real; this is dedication.
What follows is a series of scenes, some short, some longer, some purely physical, some spoken, some filmed. The rough story is that of Eleonore, a former real estate agent who has left her job in order to commit to her true identity as a cat. When she visits her doctor for help with dizzy spells, and reveals her identity, she is referred to a therapist who she visits until she no longer wants to. The story is simple. Through Eleonore’s interactions with her therapist we garner snippets of her life and some of the important relationships and events that may or may not have had an influence on who she has revealed herself to be.
McCurdy and director Peter Falkenberg have created a simply choreographed piece, rich with gesture, vocal character play, and driving themes of identity and human-hating. McCurdy is an engaging presence, easily dropping in and out of the anger/hate that runs as an undercurrent through Eleonore’s being, and creating comic moments through her depictions of the humans in her life.
The play is largely a meditation on the failings of humanity, which I find a little too relentless for my personal taste and life outlook. However, the experience as a whole is exactly what Ōtautahi needs to round out its theatre scene, and I really enjoy this. I love the grassroots nature of the production, and the way it brings people together to be part of something different. I love the earnestness of the performance, the generosity of the performer, and the care that has gone into crafting the piece. This play and company deserve our support and your life will surely be enriched by engaging with this important and long-standing strand of our theatre community.
The Cat Eleonore runs until Saturday 10 May, 2025.
Flat City Field Notes 