Review by Mark Sherry of “The Agent” Presented By Zebramez Creative
The Agent, written by local playwright Meryn Cooper, is a laugh-out-loud show which everyone in the audience loved. It is a spoof of the James Bond genre, applied to the life of a real estate agent, Michelle Schrödinger (played by Meryn Cooper).
The show, directed by Mel Poole, makes good use of the location (Warehouse 25) – it starts with an auction conducted by Michelle Schrödinger’s nemesis, Jane Bond, walking through the bar using the audience as bidders.
To help her sell Hamilton House, a particularly valuable property which would guarantee the title of Realtor of the Year, Michelle has two employees, Joan McGroan (Sarah McNally) and Brad Hardbns (Jamie Delmonte).
The character of Joan McGroan gives Meryn Cooper a chance to make fun of real estate advertising. McGroan shows Schrödinger how to use AI in advertisements, so that an absolute hellhole is described as a “property which is ideal for first home buyers” and “great for renovation.” Sarah McNally not only plays McGroan, but also a home buyer in a later scene involving a toilet which has been accidentally blocked by Brad Hardbns
As Hardbns, Jamie Delemonte often steals the show with his physical comedy: he has a penchant for copying Schrödinger’s physical moves and continually performs dazzling dance moves.
Schrödinger is an avid listener to a breakfast radio show hosted by Jock Lovegrove (Sam Herbertson), a man with a golden voice that makes her practically quiver with desire.
Lovegrove’s playlist consists of soft-rock love songs from the 1980s, especially John Farnham songs. His lines often draw on song titles from that time, which is priceless.
Although Lovegrove turns out to be a pesky client who bombards her office with complaints, Michelle engages in a quick hookup with him.
Damian Smith plays multiple roles throughout the show: a postie who hears complaints about Schrödinger’s junk mail; a sound engineer who records her radio advertisements; and the MC of the Realtor of the Year awards. Smith gives each of these roles unique characteristics, which is very difficult to do.
The award ceremony devolves into chaos, in ways that no one could have predicted. People reveal more of themselves than we had previously known, and conflict is heightened.
Although the show seems to portray real estate agents as having a cynical, win-at-all-costs mentality, a cameo appearance by a young girl, Joanna Bambini (played by Vivien Rose) towards the end of the show reminds us that there are ethical realtors.
There are with some wonderfully funny one-liners in this show. It is a unique take on the James Bond genre and there were many times when the audience was loudly laughing, particularly during Meryn Cooper’s performance at the radio station and when Jamie Delemont let loose with his physical comedy. One of the women sitting near me apologised for laughing too loudly. That is quite a compliment for a comedy.
