Little Theatre
Fri 7 Aug, 2026
A naked reading of Alistair McDowall’s Pomona is somewhat depressing. It reads a little like a whine manual for conspiracy theorists – everything wrong with the world is other peoples’ fault. ‘They’ are out to get you. I was intrigued as to how this bleak text could be wrought as entertaining theatre, but I needn’t have worried. Director Thomas Midena and a committed, talented cast of capable actors pulled it off with aplomb.
Pomona is both a metaphor for the eerie unknown aspects of existence, and a mysterious place within a city. Pomona the play has a plot of sorts, with a cast of characters interacting with each other in different contexts via a series of vignettes that slowly reveal who they are. Each vignette may or not be connected in time or narrative. Characters are not always sure where they are, or even who they are. There’s a feeling that everything is happening as part of a continuous loop on the treadmill of life.
Dialogue is mostly uncomplicated, often with short unfinished sentences that reflect an uncertainty of purpose.
With this lack of a linear narrative, no obvious goal or endpoint, there needs to be some reprieve from the uncertainty for a live audience. This comes in the form of strong performances in quirky scenes. Each scene or vignette is a work to itself and carries weight on its own. They are distinctive and entertaining enough to hold audience interest. The scene featuring a branched scenario game played in the imagination between Charlie (Jessie Chugg) and Keaton (Lily Watkins) was really well done – quite gripping. And neat how it morphs its way back into the action later in the play to blur the boundaries between reality and fiction.
Another highlight where a man visits a prostitute for nothing more than to just talk and touch was beautifully played by Louis Bianchini and Airlie- Jade Windle. A moving and poignant scene.
I appreciated the invoking of the spirit of Jonathan Livingstone Seagull to make light of one of the more disturbing images from this play, before it once again turned to tales of dystopian horror. What do you do if you are stuck in Pomona? The final group scenes suggest you can let fate take its course, or you can take control of your own destiny. The choice is yours. And if you are struggling to find your way out of Pomona there will be other souls who will reach out and share the journey with you. No matter how bleak life may seem you are not alone.
Despite the constant presence of angst this production was ultimately really enjoyable. Cleverly put together with great variety in scene presentations, and enough levity to keep it from being too dark.
This review also posted on The Clothesline.
