ART

What is it that binds me to you? 

There is a particular vulnerability and risk found only in decades-long friendships. It is a space where the boundaries between "chosen friend" and "unavoidable family" will blur, and amongst a wealth of shared history, pockets of hidden resentment will sprout. They may be suppressed and concealed - or ultimately triggered by a moment which so frustratingly acts as a microcosm of that wider new annoying thing about you that I judge harshly, and it’s definitely about you, objectively. It’s laughable that you’d think it’s about me. That particular breed of interaction is the launchpad for Yasmina Reza’s ART, playing at QPAC’s Playhouse until March 22. One man, fully laden with ego, questioning why one of his oldest mates would break the mould of his expected behaviour and instead invest a ridiculous dollar sum into an offensively white-on-white-on-white piece of art. 

ART feels as though it carries the same “dinner party gone wrong” DNA as modern masterpieces such as Reza’s later God of Carnage or Stefan Vögel's dark comedy The Kidney (brought to Brisbane Fringe in 2022) - however - we are treated to a number of fast-paced vignettes, couplings and short monologues allowing for small and snappy time-jumps through the handful of interactions which serve as ART’s dinner party. It makes the 90-minute, one-act piece feel richer and more engaging than a mono-scenic play, but still delivers the “20 year friendship reduced to rubble by a Rube Goldberg machine of conversations and interactions triggered by one minor disagreement based on taste” excitement that is typical of the genre. Narrative-wise, it also allows for our three leads to have undertaken some stewing and rumination before returning for more psychological deconstruction wrapped up as male bonding. 

Directed by Lee Lewis, this production stars a formidable trio of Australian talent: Richard Roxburgh, Damon Herriman, and Toby Schmitz. While the play’s marketing might suggest a "high art" evening—three crooners in sharp suits debating aesthetics—the reality is far more grounded. Witnessing Marc (Roxburgh) deliver his full, untherapised reaction to a trusted friend evolving beyond his assigned box was heartily entertaining and shamefully relatable. It is through the perspective of Roxburgh’s Marc that we truly hone in on the question of what is it that binds me to you? Followed eagerly by What does this change in you say about me? Shall I abandon you first before you abandon me? What do you see in this painting that I do not?

Schmitz delivers the play’s signature frantic energy, perfectly capturing the middle-man caught in the crossfire of his friends’ relentless search to find themselves at the core of each others’ decision-making. Herriman’s Serge is the perfect embodiment of This isn’t even my opinion, I’m just speaking objectively as a personality trait that allows for participation in discussion only with the caveat that I’m not emotionally invested in this. I’m not mad, you’re mad, actually. For a play built on such simmering psychological friction, the stage choreography occasionally failed to meet the moment. A scuffle felt slightly under-rehearsed, momentarily breaking the spell of the otherwise high-stakes drama. 

ART asks if we can find it within ourselves to see our friends for who they are becoming, rather than who we want or expect them to be. It remains a must-watch for its sharp insight and the rare privilege of seeing this trio navigate the slow-motion car crash of a friendship.

ART is playing at QPAC's Playhouse until 22 March 2026 before heading to Melbourne.